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Cape Town - All the need-to-know facts on the international teams vying for glory in Group G at the 2018 Soccer World Cup in Russia.
ENGLAND
Honours: 1966 World Cup winners
Past World Cup performance: 14th tournament.
Best result: Winners in 1966
FIFA ranking: 13th
Main clubs: Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal
Nickname: The Three Lions
How they qualified: Group F winners
Friendly matches scheduled before the World Cup: June 7 Costa Rica (Leeds)
23-man World Cup squad:
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland (Stoke/ENG), Jordan Pickford (Everton/ENG), Nick Pope (Burnley/ENG)
Defenders: Kyle Walker (Manchester City/ENG) John Stones (Manchester City/ENG), Harry Maguire (Leicester/ENG), Kieran Trippier (Tottenham/ENG), Danny Rose (Tottenham/ENG), Ashley Young (Manchester United/ENG), Phil Jones (Manchester United/ENG), Gary Cahill (Chelsea/ENG), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool/ENG)
Midfielders: Eric Dier (Tottenham/ENG), Dele Alli (Tottenham/ENG), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United/ENG), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool/ENG), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Crystal Palace/ENG), Fabian Delph (Manchester City/ENG)
Forwards: Jamie Vardy (Leicester/ENG), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United/ENG), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City/ENG) Harry Kane (Tottenham/ENG, Danny Welbeck (Arsenal/ENG)
TUNISIA
Honours: Africa Cup of Nations winners 2004.
Past World Cup performance: Fifth participation.
Best result: Group stage in 1978, 1998, 2002, 2006.
FIFA ranking: 14th
Main clubs: Esperance, Club Africain, Etoile du Sahel
Nickname: The Carthage Eagles
How they qualified: Winners of Group A in African qualifying
Friendly matches scheduled before the World Cup: June 9 v Spain (Krasnodar)
29-man preliminary World Cup squad (23-man squad to be named by June 4):
Goalkeepers: Aymen Mathlouthi (Al Batin/KSA), Moez Ben Cherifia (Esperance), Farouk Ben Mustapha (Al Shabab/KSA), Mouez Hassen (Chateauroux/FRA)
Defenders: Nagguez Hamdi (Zamalek/EGY), Dylan Bronn (Gent/BEL), Rami Bedoui (Etoile du Sahel), Yohan Benalouane (Leicester/ENG), Syam Ben Youssef (Kasimpasa/TUR), Yassine Meriah (CS Sfaxien), Bilel Mohsni (Dundee United/SCO), Khalil Chammam (Esperance), Oussama Haddadi (Dijon/FRA), Ali Maaloul (Al Ahly/EGY)
Midfielders: Ellyes Skhiri (Montpellier/FRA), Mohamed Amine Ben Amor (Al Ahly/KSA), Ghaylene Chalali (Esperance), Karim Laribi (Cesena/ITA), Farjani Sassi (Al Nassr/KSA), Ahmed Khalil (Club Africain), Seifeddine El Khaoui (Troyes/FRA), Mohamed Larbi (Tours/FRA)
Forwards: Fakhreddine Ben Youssef (Al Ettifaq/KSA), Anice Badri (Esperance), Bassem Srarfi (Nice/FRA), Ahmed Akaichi (Al Ittihad/KSA), Wahbi Khazri (Rennes/FRA), Naim Sliti (Dijon/FRA), Saber Khalifa (Club Africain)
Coach: Nabil Maaloul
The former Tunisian international midfielder has guided the country to the World Cup for the first time since 2006, having returned as head coach for a second time. Maaloul's first stint in charge saw him resign after failing to take the team to the 2014 tournament in Brazil. The 55-year-old was previously manager of the Kuwait national team and led Tunisian giants Esperance to the 2011 CAF Champions League title.
BELGIUM
Honours: Nil
Past World Cup performance: 12th participation.
Best result: Semi-finals in 1986
FIFA ranking: 3
Main clubs: Anderlecht, Club Brugge, Standard Liege
Nickname: Red Devils
How they qualified: Finished top of European qualifying Group H with nine wins and a draw from 10 games
Friendly matches scheduled before the World Cup: June 6 v Egypt, June 11 v Costa Rica
Provisional 28-man World Cup squad:
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea/ENG), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool/ENG), Matz Sels (Anderlecht), Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg/GER)
Defenders: Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen (both Tottenham Hotspurs/ENG), Dedryck Boyata (Celtic/SCO), Laurent Ciman (Los Angeles FC/USA), Christian Kabasele (Watford/ENG), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City/ENG), Jordan Lukaku (Lazio/ITA), Thomas Meunier (Paris Saint-Germain/FRA), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona/ESP)
Midfielders: Leander Dendoncker (Anderlecht), Yannick Carrasco (Dalian Yifang/CHN), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City/ENG), Nacer Chadli (West Bromwich Albion/ENG), Mousa Dembele (Tottenham Hotspur/ENG), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United/ENG), Eden Hazard (Chelsea/ENG), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Monchengladbach/GER), Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad/ESP), Youri Tielemans (Monaco/FRA), Axel Witsel (Tianjin Quanjian/CHN)
Forwards: Dries Mertens (Napoli/ITA), Michy Batshuayi (Chelsea/ENG), Christian Benteke (Crystal Palace/ENG), Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United/ENG)
PANAMA
Honours: CONCACAF Gold Cup runners-up 2005, 2013. Copa Centroamericana winners 2009.
Past World Cup performance: 1st participation
FIFA ranking: 55
Main clubs: Arabe Unido, Tauro
Nickname: Los Canaleros (The Canal Men)
How they qualified: They finished third behind Mexico and Costa Rica in CONCACAF final round of qualifying.
Friendly matches scheduled before the World Cup: June 6 v Norway
Provisional 35-man World Cup squad:
Goalkeepers: Jaime Penedo (Dynamo Bucarest/ROM), Jos Caldern (Chorrillo), Alex Rodrguez (San Francisco)
Defeders: Azmahar Ariano (Patriotas/COL), Felipe Baloy (Municipal/GUA), Harold Cummings (San Jose Earthquakes/USA), ric Davis (DAC Dunajsk Streda/SVK), Fidel Escobar (New York Red Bulls/USA), Adolfo Machado (Houston Dynamo/USA), Michael Amir Murillo (New York Red Bulls/USA), Luis Ovalle (Olimpia/HON), Francisco Palacios (San Francisco), Richard Peralta (Alianza), Romn Torres (Seattle Sounders/USA)
Midfielders: Ricardo vila (Ghent/BEL),dgar Brcenas (Cafetaleros de Tapachula/MEX), Ricardo Buitrago (Municipal/GUA), Miguel Camargo (San Martn/PER), Adalberto Carrasquilla (Tauro), Armando Cooper (Universidad de Chile/CHI), Anbal Godoy (San Jose Earthquakes/USA), Gabriel Gmez (Atltico Bucaramanga/COL), Jos Gonzlez (Unin Comercio/PER), Cristian Martnez (Columbus Crew/USA), Valentn Pimentel (Plaza Amador), Alberto Quintero (Universitario/PER), Jos Luis Rodrguez (Ghent/BEL)
Forwards: Abdiel Arroyo (Liga Deportiva Alajuelense/CRC), Rolando Blackburn (Chorrillo), Ismael Daz (Deportivo de La Corua/ESP), Jos Fajardo (Club Atltico Independiente), Roberto Nurse (Mineros de Zacatecas/MEX), Blas Prez (Municipal/GUA), Luis Tejada (Sport Boys/PER), Gabriel Torres (Huachipato/CHI).
