Los Angeles vs ES Tunis Bet Builder Tips: 40/1 five-fold from Geodis Park

Los Angeles and Esperance de Tunis both got off to losing starts at the 2025 Fifa Club World Cup, with the American outfit losing 2-0 to Chelsea on Monday, and the Tunisian team following suit with the same scoreline defeat to Flamengo on Tuesday.

The sides face off against each other next, at Geodis Park in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday (23:00 BST, DAZN), and ahead of this Group D game, I've drawn up a 40/1 five-fold. Read below for my Los Angeles vs ES Tunis Bet Builder Tips, featuring a couple of player cards to consider.

Denis Bouanga (LAF) Total Shots on Target - 2+

LAFC's main man, Denis Bouanga, was front and centre of the action against Chelsea on Monday. He committed two fouls, was upended twice himself, and was responsible for three of their seven shots at goal.

Crucially for the first selection of this Bet Builder, all three of his efforts hit the target, with Blues goalkeeper Robert Sanchez denying the Gabon international on each occasion.

The 30-year-old's statistics in that Group D opener were of little surprise to me, as I had picked him out as LAFC's player to watch at the tournament, and detailed his shooting statistics in Major League Soccer.

Today's Football Fixtures

We're revisiting old ground here, but the information remains relevant. In MLS this year, Bouanga is averaging five shots per game (4.6 p/g in 2024) and 2.4 shots on target per game (1.8 p/g in 2024). In the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup, he averaged 5.2 shots per game and 2.5 shots on target per game.

The former St. Etienne forward was unable to get on the scoresheet against Chelsea, but his recent record remains impressive, with nine goals in his last 11 matches.

Still, I think it's worth backing him to register 2+ shots on target (4/5), rather than scoring anytime (20/21), with the difference between the odds negligible.

Mohamed Youcef Belaili (EST) Total Shots on Target - 1+

I'm also backing Mohamed Youcef Belaili in the 'Player Shots on Target' market, but I'm dropping down to one for the ES Tunis winger, who forced a save from Flamengo goalkeeper Agustin Rossi with one of his four attempts on Tuesday.

Like Bouanga, who plays a similar role on the left-hand side of the attack, Belaili was responsible for the majority of his side's shots in their group opener, with only two more efforts recorded aside from his own.

The 33-year-old was the Tunisian team's joint-second-top goalscorer in the 2024/25 Ligue Professionnelle 1, with his tally of nine (in 21 appearances) just one behind leading marksman Yan Sasse. He was even more potent in the CAF Champions League, though, netting seven goals in 10 outings (including qualifiers).

Los Angeles vs ES Tunis Odds

Belaili averaged exactly one shot per game in African club football's premier cup competition, and he arrived at this tournament having scored in his last three games for club and country, opening the scoring for Algeria in a 2-0 friendly victory over Rwanda on June 5.

Following Tuesday's effort saved by Rossi, Belaili has now registered at least one shot on target in his last four matches.

Player Shown Any Card - Sergi Palencia (LAF)

I'm not a big fan of backing a card for a player walking a disciplinary tightrope, as often, I feel that they can be holding back, eager to avoid a ban.

However, I'm going to break the habit of a lifetime and propose a booking for not one, but two players, in danger of a suspension on Friday.

The first is LAFC's Sergi Palencia, who was cautioned in the second minute of second-half stoppage time on Monday for a foul on Pedro Neto, having previously upended Tyrique George.

Football Odds

A Palencia card came as little surprise to anyone remotely interested in MLS, as the Spaniard was shown nine yellows and one red in 34 league appearances last year, while this season, he's already on five bookings in 16 matches.

The 29-year-old averaged 1.7 fouls per game in MLS last season and is averaging 1.9 per game this term, while his yellow against Chelsea was his third consecutive caution, following bookings earlier this month against Club America and Sporting Kansas City. It's also four in his last five, five in seven, and six in 10.

On Friday, the Barcelona Academy graduate is likely to be in direct competition with Belaili, who was fouled five times by Flamengo earlier in the week. The Brazilian side's right-back on the night, Guillermo Varela, committed four fouls against the Tunisians, including one on their Algerian ace in the 87th minute.

Given Palencia's previous indiscretions and Belaili's tricky nature, LAFC's right-back is the obvious candidate to go into the referee's notebook in Nashville and incur a one-game ban for an accumulation of cards.

Player Shown Any Card - Khalil Guenichi (EST)

Another player booked earlier in the week was ES Tunis midfielder Khalil Guenichi, who made three fouls in total against Flamengo before being substituted in the 75th minute.

The 22-year-old committed the first of his fouls on Gerson, who was operating on the right-hand side of the Rubro-Negro's attack, while the second, which brought about his booking, and third were on their No. 10 Giorgian De Arrascaeta.

On Friday, Guenichi will be tasked with containing the talents of LAFC midfield trio Timothy Tillman, Igor Jesus and Marky Delgado, all of whom are proficient at winning fouls. Tillman is averaging 2.4 fouls won per game in MLS this season, slightly ahead of Igor Jesus (2.1 p/g) and more than double that of Delgado (one p/g).

Tillman was taken down twice by Chelsea on Monday, and it's the USA international in particular who I think could give the Tunisian midfield the runaround.

ES Tunis midfielder Onuche Ogbelu was a consideration in this market, but he only made one foul against Flamengo and has 'only' been yellow carded six times this season compared to the seven dished out to Guenichi, who has also been shown one red. Ogbelu is 7/4 to be carded on Friday, while Guenichi is 3/1, so the value lies with the Tunisian over the Nigerian.

Igor Jesus (LAF) Total Tackles - 3+

Lastly, I'm backing LAFC's Igor Jesus to make at least three fouls, something he managed to do in his final two MLS matches before heading to the Club World Cup.

The 22-year-old is averaging 2.3 per game in MLS, but averaged 2.8 per game in the Concacaf Champions Cup, and made two against Chelsea on Monday before being withdrawn in the 81st minute.

I can see Friday's contest with ES Tunis producing a real battle in the middle of midfield, and the industrious Brazilian will need to be at his bruising best to help his side come out on top, so three tackles should be doable to lift the Bet Builder to a whopping 40/1.

I managed to land a 12/1 Bet Builder in Seattle Sounders v Atletico Madrid on Thursday, with a player tackles selection in there, too, so here's hoping for another win here at even bigger odds.

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