 |
 |
Tunisia Kit 1 |
Tunisia Kit 2 |
Having started the qualifiers as reigning African Cup of Nations champions, Tunisia wobbled their way through 2004 before things slotted into place in 2005.
After defeating old foes Morocco in the Cup of Nations final, the Tunisians were again paired with their North African rivals in Group 5.
A second draw - the 2-2 result in Tunis in which the hosts twice came from behind to level the scores - was enough to send them through at the expense of Morocco and third-placed Guinea.
Tunisia's continental success two years ago plus an impressive showing at last June's Confederations Cup prove they have the wherewithal to handle big-time occasions.
In addition, their fitness and organisation - much like the development in many African countries - improved markedly from their 2004 Cup of Nations success despite being eliminated at the quarter-final stage on penalties by Nigeria earlier this year.
Coach Roger Lemerre believes much of the North Africans' improvement is due to the influence of Europe - in particular the close connections with his native France. Nationalised striker Francileudo Dos Santos plays his football in Ligue 1 at Toulouse with Strasbourg's promising Haikel Gmamdia (see one to watch) expected to ruffle opposition feathers in Germany with his speed and directness.
Tunisian officials have also recently convinced the Toulouse-born David Jameli to switch nationality after numerous requests. The Bordeaux striker debuted in March's friendly defeat to Serbia and Montenegro although FIFA rebuffed a similar bid to have fellow attacker Nabil Taider available after the 22-year-old was capped by France at junior level.
The one black mark on Lemerre's World Cup preparations is the lack of sparring partners ahead of the tournament. Tunisia have so far organised a solitary friendly against fellow qualifiers Iran on June 7 although more matches are in the pipeline, possibly a clash with Kuwait.
When you contrast Tunisia's schedule with Group H rivals Saudi Arabia's action-packed diary of six matches during May and early June, you wonder whether the Africans might arrive slightly underdone.
Brazilian-born Francileudo Dos Santos rose to prominence after his claim for Tunisian nationality was rushed through ahead of the 2004 African Cup of Nations. He promptly scored four goals for his adopted homeland including a memorable opener in the final defeat of neighbours Morocco to become an instant hero.
Dos Santos' goals have continued to flow since including four against Malawi in World Cup qualifying and a hat-trick against Zambia in the CAF championship. He is the second Brazilian-born player to be adopted by Tunisia after Jose Clayton, the Qatar-based defender looking forward to his third finals appearance.
Pacy forward whose goalscoring exploits at Tunisian champions CS Sfaxien earned him a transfer to Strasbourg last year.
Roger Lemerre joined Tunisia in October 2002 after bowing out of his duties with the French national team following a disastrous World Cup in Korea/Japan.
His denigrators say his success leading France to the Euro 2000 title was only achieved on the back of Aimé Jacquet's 1998 World Cup winning triumph despite the 63-year-old coach being named coach of the year soon afterwards.
Lemerre hasn't always endeared himself to the big name players with some accusing him of being over-controlling and disrespectful.
1994: Did not qualify
1998: First round
2002: First round
Tough encounters with powerful Europeans Spain and Ukraine mean Tunisia are unlikely to progress past the group stage at the fourth time of asking.
Goalkeepers Ali Boumnijel (Club Africain), Hamdi Kasraoui
(Esperance Tunis), Adel Nefzi (US Monastir)
Defenders Anis Ayari (Samsunspor, Turkey), Karim Hagui (Strasbourg,
France), Radhi Jaidi (Bolton Wanderers, England), David Jemmali
(Bordeaux, France), Mehdi Meriah (Etoile du Sahel), Karim Saidi
(Lecce, Italy), Hatem Trabelsi (Ajax, Holland), Alaeddine Yahya
(Saint-Etienne, France)
Midfielders Riadh Bouazizi (Kayserispor, Turkey), Adel Chedli
(Nuremberg, Germany), Yassine Chikhaoui (Etoile du Sahel), Kais
Ghodhbane (Diyarbakirspor, Turkey), Issam Jomaa (Lens, France),
Sofiene Melliti (Gaziantespor, Turkey), Jawhar Menari (Nuremberg,
Germany), Mehdi Nafti (Birmingham City, England), Hamed Namouchi
(Rangers, Scotland), Karim Zdiri (Rosenborg, Norway),
Forwards Ziad Jaziri (Troyes, France), Francileudo Santos
(Toulouse, France)