Tunisia will open their World Cup campaign fired up by their presumed status as the weakest team in Group H.
Assistant coach Khemais Laabidi said that his team see Wednesday`s match against Russia as their opportunity to show they can compete at the highest level.
Asked about the assumption that Tunisia will struggle in a group also containing Japan and Belgium, he said: "It is certainly going to be a source of motivation."
Laabidi added: "For a country with a population of 10 million, one of the challenges for us is to give a good account of our country in front of the whole of the footballing world, and to show everyone that we can make the most of these
matches.
"We`re honoured to be here and we will be giving the maximum."
However, Laabidi admitted that his men cannot expect an easy ride from the Russians, who topped their qualifying group with seven wins from 10 games.
"They`ve got good players in all departments and we know it`s going to be a difficult match" he said.
"But we`ve prepared well for it, both from a psychological point of view, and also in terms of our attacking manoeuvres."
Winless at France `98, Tunisia`s only finals victory was a 3-1 triumph over Mexico two decades earlier.
They also drew 0-0 with West Germany in the group stages of that 1978 tournament.
