Ranking every World Cup Team Performance after the First Round of Group Games

#28 - Tunisia

Oops!

The North Africans came into this tournament as the top-ranked African side and were close to escaping with a point against a young and vibrant England side.

The Tunisians started in the worst possible manner. Their defence could not cope with the dynamic movement of the England attackers and were carved open multiple times in the first half. Their set-piece defending was appalling throughout the game as they struggled to cope with the aerial prowess of Harry Maguire and co. The Tunisians conceded both their goals from set pieces and due to the fact that they were unable to intercept any follow-up balls from set pieces. They were lucky to go into halftime on level terms after the Kyle Walker gave away a penalty which seeped through Jermaine Pickford's outstretched arms.

The 'Eagles of Carthage' settled in the second half but were really disappointing. There is nothing wrong with having a defensive mindset in football. But the important part of having such a mindset is being in control of your opponent's attackers. Tunisia were far from that and resorted to fouls in order to stop the English front line. The decision to play Wahbi Khazri, a traditional winger, as a centre-forward against a quick and strong England backline, never paid off. He was isolated and was at least 20-25 yards ahead of the rest of his teammates.

The Tunisians will need to show more threat going forward against the Belgians in their next game. The manager will need to think of an alternative plan against the likes of Hazard and De Bruyne who will be more lethal and effective than their English counterparts if given similar chances.

#27 Costa Rica

Keylor Navas

World Cup 2014's biggest surprise package were expected to put in another dogged performance against the Serbians. Playing with a five-man defence, it was clear that Costa Rica were trying to play the same pragmatic system which helped them remain unbeaten against three former World champions in the 2014 edition.

However, the defence was not as solid as expected. Keylor Navas was his usual reliable self but he will be a bit disappointed at his team's performance.

Costa Rica were trying to hold their defensive line and counter through the wings by putting pressure on the Serbian fullbacks who were experienced but a bit slower than their Costa Rican counterparts. The Los Ticos' wing backs were expected to overlap around the Serbian flanks but rarely did so. Too much was expected of Bryan Ruiz who was the only creative outlet available to Oscar Ramirez.

While not a lot is expected of the Costa Ricans in another difficult group, you would expect the fans of the tiny nation to hope for another miracle against a former world champion in their group.