Belo Horizonte (Brazil), June 16: The fourth-place holder in the 1986 edition, Belgium will take on Alegria in the opening game of Group H in the 2014 Fifa World Cup at Estádio Mineiro here on Monday.

FIFA RANKINGS: BELGIUM 11, ALGERIA 22

Ranked 11 in Fifa's list, the Red Devils have come to this World Cup with high expectations. Belgium are regarded as underachievers for they are a bunch of highly talented footballers who have not done justice to themselves. Clubbed with Algeria, South Korea and Russia, the Belgians will have their task cut out to better their 1986 record.

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Belgium will be depending on Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen as makeshift full-backs while Thomas Vermaelen and Vincent Kompany will be their centre-back pairs. Axel Witsel is an excellent midfielder and Marouane Fellaini will have to match the former to thwart the Algerian wingers and full-backs. Attacking midfielder Kevin De Bruyne will be another key player to watch.

Both Belgium and Algeria have made four appearances in World Cup football

Algeria or the Le Fennecs, on the other hand, may look the weaker side but they can't be written off. Appearing in its fourth World Cup and the second successive one, Algeria's strategy remains unpredicted for the opponents. Djamel Mesbah , Faouzi Ghoulam, Liassine Cadamuro-Bentaiba, Yacine Brahimi, Madjid Bougherra, Essaid Belkalem and Hassan Yabda will be some of the players to look forward to.

The match will begin at 3.30 am IST on Tuesday.

Teams:

Belgium (4-2-3-1): Thibaut Courtois,Jan Vertonghen, Thomas Vermaelen, Vincent Kompany, Toby Alderweireld, Marouane Fellaini, Axel Witsel, Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Kevin Mirallas, Romelu Lukaku.

Coach: Marc Wilmots

Algeria (4-2-3-1): Rais M'Bolhi, Faouzi Ghoulam, Madjid Bougherra, Essaid Belkalem, Aissa Mandi, Hassan Yebda, Saphir Taider, El Arbi Hillel Soudani, Yacine Brahimi, Sofiane Feghouli, Islam Slimani.

Coach: Vahid Halilhodžić

Referee: Marco RodrÍguez (Mexico)

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