By Durosimi Thomas BBC North African football correspondent

Zitouni's goalscoring form could be crucial for Tunisia

After the senior national side's maiden Cup of Nations triumph in February, Olympic qualification is another chapter in what appears to be a fruitful year for Tunisian football.

Pitted against 1996 champions Nigeria, Egypt and Senegal in the final qualifying stages, few expected Tunisia to snatch the Athens ticket.

A goalless draw with Senegal in the first qualifying game reinforced those doubts.

But the pessimism of Tunisian fans turned to joy as striker Ali Zitouni scored in the decisive game against Nigeria, denying the West Africans a third consecutive appearance at the Olympics.

Tunisia's squad to Athens is sprinkled with some of the managerial expertise that won the Cup of Nations.

Nabil Maaloul, assistant to Roger Lemerre at the Nations Cup, manages the side with the assistance of 1978 World Cup player Khemaies Laabidi.

The duo included six members of the Cup of Nations squad in the Athens team, with three of them qualifying as over-aged players.

Valuable experience

Goalkeeper Khaled Fadhel was a reserve goalkeeper, Mohamed Jedidi featured as a substitute, while defender Jose Clayton played a key role in the Carthage Eagles' victory.

Clayton changed nationality to play for Tunisia

The presence of Jedidi and Zitouni in the team could be a threat to the ambitions of group C opponents Argentina, Australia and Serbia-Montenegro.

Zitouni, who is Tunisia's top scorer in African competitions with 20 goals for Esperance, is a player that could get the attention of the football fraternity.

Skipper and midfielder Khaled Mouelhi has sufficient experience to forge a midfield partnership with Houcine Regueb from French side Paris Saint-Germain.

Although Feyenoord defender Karim Saidi will be absent from Athens, Alaeddine Yahia and Anis Ayari are expected to form a reliable defensive partnership.

But Tunisia's quest for a credible Olympic performance could be dependent on their opening tie against Australia on 11 August.

Should they fail to claim three points in that game, the North Africans could be in a poor frame of mind to face ambitious Argentina and Serbia in subsequent ties.