ALTHOUGH playing in their first finals since 2002, Belgium came to the World Cup as the bookmakers’ fifth favourites to win the title.

An exciting young team with stars like Eden Hazard, Vincent Kompany and Axel Witsel, Belgium didn’t show much flair against Algeria despite their 2-1 win in their Group ‘H’ opener last Tuesday.

A win against Russia at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday would send them through to the last 16 and the Belgians are looking to seal their berth in the knockout stages in style.

“We’re more confident heading to the match against Russia after winning the first game,” Tottenham Hotspur defender Jan Vertonghen said at a press conference on Friday. “Now we can play with less pressure.”

Belgium had to come from behind to win against Algeria and Vertonghen said that the team were ready to handle the pressure which comes with being one of the favourites.

“I believe we’re strong enough to overcome the pressure,” he said. “People are saying that we’re one of the favourites but we are only thinking about Russia at this point in time.

“I think we’ll have more space than we had Algeria and we’ll be able to show what we can do with the ball. If that’s not the case, it will be up to us to find the solutions.”

Belgium captain Kompany remains a doubt for the game after suffering from a groin strain during win against Algeria but team-mate Anthony Vanden Borre believes the Manchester City defender will be fit to lead the team.

“Vinnie [Kompany] is always there for the team,” he said, sitting next to Vertonghen, on Friday.

“Says enough when you know he played with a fractured eye socket and a broken nose against Serbia [during a World Cup qualifier last June].

“He can always overcome physical pain, so I’m not worried about it.”

Like Belgium, Russia are also playing in their first World Cup since 2002 when both sides met in the group stage.

Belgium won 3-2 then but Russia are looking forward to the match after needing Alexander Kerzakhov’s equalizer for a 1-1 draw against South Korea in their opening game on Wednesday.

Kerzakhov is the only member in Russia’s 23-man squad who was a part of the side 12 years ago.

“For many players, this is the first World Cup,” Russian defender Aleksei Kozlov said at the press conference on Friday.

“At this level, only Sasha [Kerzhakov] had played. Of course there was a lot excitement and we wanted to play well against Korea.

“But we are glad that the tournament, for which we have been preparing for has finally begun.”

His team-mate, midfielder Denis Glushakov meanwhile acknowledged the challenge of taking on Belgium but admitted that playing at the iconic Maracana would be an inspiration.

“I’m really excited that we’re going to play in Rio, in the Maracana,” he said. “It’s a fantastic stadium. Everyone knows it’s a historic place in football.”

The excitement of playing at the Maracana also wasn’t lost some 156km away from Itu.

“I’m really looking forward to it because it seems to me to be an incredible experience,” Vertonghen said. “Maracana together with the Wembley is one of the most famous football stadiums in the world.”

Probable teams:

BELGIUM: Thibaut Courtois, Toby Alderweireld, Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen, Daniel van Buyten; Kevin De Bruyne, Nacer Chadli, Axel Witsel, Mousa Dembele, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku.

RUSSIA: Igor Akinfeev, Vasili Berezutskiy, Sergey Ignashevich, Andrey Eshchenko, Dmitry Kombarov, Yury Zhirkov, Denis Glushakov, Alexander Samedov, Victor Faizulin, Oleg Shatov, Alexander Kokorin.

Referee: Felix Brych (Germany).