Has there ever been a better known and more fancied World Cup 'dark horse' than Belgium? The bookmakers have them down as sixth favourites, they are rated above Holland and France in the Fifa rankings, their squad is the third most expensive in the tournament and their team contains the Arsenal captain, arguably the best young player in the world and reigning champions in both the Premier League and La Liga. They qualified for the World Cup finals without losing a single game and have probably the easiest group in the entire tournament.Belgium (Possible, 4-2-3-1): Courtois; Alderweireld, Kompany, Buyten, Vertonghen; Witsel, Fellaini; Mertens, Bruyne, Hazard; Lukaku.
Algeria (Possible, 4-3-2-1): Zemmampouche; Mandi, Cadamuro, Bougherra, Ghoulam; Lacen, Bentaleb, Taider; Soudani, Feghouli; Slimani.
Venue: Estadio Mineirao, Belo HorizonteKick-off: 17.00 BST.TV: ITV.
13.30 Belgiumhave become a lot of netural's 'B' team at this World Cup but Algeria's coach has risked insulting his opponents by saying the Group H favourites are not all 'Ferraris.'
Vahid Halilhodzic said: 'With the Belgian defence, they are not all Ferraris, you know.' He wasn't holding back either when he went on to refer to some of the players as being more like a cheaper, slower brand of car.
Belgium captain, Vincent Kompany, meanwhile, has had some praise for Algeria.
'They have a good team,' he said. 'They are dangerous offensively, that is true. But we have strong organisation. It will be like a chess match.'
Here are Jeremy Wilson's thoughts on the 'dark horses' of this year's World Cup.
Has there ever been a better known and more fancied World Cup 'dark horse' than Belgium? The bookmakers have them down as sixth favourites, they are rated above Holland and France in the Fifa rankings, their squad is the third most expensive in the tournament and their team contains the Arsenal captain, arguably the best young player in the world and reigning champions in both the Premier League and La Liga. They qualified for the World Cup finals without losing a single game and have probably the easiest group in the entire tournament.
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