Guy Noves will send his Toulouse team out against Leicester Tigers at the Walkers Stadium on Sunday in the battle of the double Heineken Cup champions declaring the semi-final offers his team the "pleasure" of measuring themselves against the Zurich Premiership high fliers.
Toulouse, the winners in 1996 and 2003, and Leicester, the winners in 2001 and 2002, will collide in front of a full house in the first rugby match played at the home of Leicester City FC.
"In terms of experience they are like us - one of the biggest clubs in Europe - and like us they also boast many international players," said Noves.
"They inspire me with a combination of fear, respect and admiration and it will be a pleasure to be able to measure and evaluate ourselves against them. It's going to be an enormous confrontation.
"Leicester are a very impressive team who largely dominate their domestic championship and who hold the trump cards in every area of their game.
"Sadly, Fabien Pelous is injured and we have lost our leader - but that's what happens in professional sporting competitions.
"What's more, we had really protected Fabien this season, resting him whenever possible and at the Bourgoin game he came on at half-time and got injured five minutes later. On top of that we will be missing Jean Bouilhou in the back row.
"We know there are certain players in the Leicester who have hung up their boots for the national side, but that means that what they have left is to put in their best performances for their club - and that is proven by the number of their players going on the Lions tour. It's just a shame that Fabien won't have the opportunity to play one more time against Martin Johnson."
Pelous - who has made 57 tournament appearances and saw his team beat Clermont Auvergne 28-10 in the French Championship on Friday night - believes Toulouse have still got the firepower to reach a record fourth final without him.
"It's a massive disappointment not to be playing in the semi-final," said Pelous, who led France to Six Nations Grand Slam glory in 2004.
"Obviously it is a big blow for the team and from a personal point of view it's very difficult, but the name of the game is to know how to just get on with it.
"As far as my head-to-head with Martin Johnson is concerned, you just have to accept that it's not going to happen this time around.
"As well as being a high quality player, he is, more importantly, an inspirational and emblematic captain as well as an essential player at Leicester and so far he has been more or less faultless and has steered his team to a virtually unbeaten season in England.
"Leicester are a very powerful team, but I would rather not think about them and concentrate on the game of my team-mates. I have confidence in them.
"We have earned the right to be in the semi-final so it's easy to feel confident. We are going to do what we need to and try and take this opportunity to turn the game to our favour in Leicester."
