KUWAIT, June 18 (KUNA) -- Belgium meets Panama as part of the FIFA World Cup's Group G matches, as the Europeans, who rank 3rd in FIFA working ranking, show eagerness to stand alongside football's great teams.
Both teams are showing respect for the other squad and have expressed full confidence in their own players.
Belgium Coach Roberto Martinez said "It is a privilege to have all these players. Not only for their talent but also for their skills.
"My job is to get the best from them on the pitch and one of the best ways is when they enjoy playing," he added.
Belgium have key players, starting from goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, defender Vincent Kompany, midfielders Kevin de Bruyne, Marouane Fellaini and Moussa Dembele, as well as forward Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard.
Courtois said Belgium was not one of the favorites of the world cup but "just as one of the best outsiders.
"Everything starts with a belief that we have the capacity to win, and we have it," he added in a news conference on eve of the match, to be held at Fisht Stadium.
Panama coach Hernan Gomez said he has good players and "we will play against a team that has great techniques and also a great manager. Belgium have (one of) the best players in the world." Panama midfielder Gabriel Gomez commented on the match against Belgium and said "we have respect for all three teams in this group, but having respect does not mean feeling fear.
"We are newcomers with great ambitions, and we want to represent Panama Honorably," he added.
Tunisia and England will be the second match of this group. The two teams' last encounter was in the group stages of the 1998 World Cup in France and England won 2-0.
England, which won the World Cup once in 1966, have never lost to an African team in the World Cup. Tunisia are playing their fifth world cup.
England manager Gareth Southgate said he believed the team could shrug off past disappointments and called on supporters to get behind their young team.
He said the players should not be burdened with these past disappointments. "They are a fresh group. Most of them have very few caps. The future is all ahead of them, so they have to be thinking about what's possible," he added.
Tunisia's coach Nabil Maaloul told a pre-game news conference that his squad was ready for the match.
"We will face one of the best teams in this tournament. All of England's players play in the Premier League, which is a good thing for them," he said.
On his team, Maaloul said "this generation has good quality and our objective is to reach the quarter-final, especially aswe have played at a high level in friendly matches." (end) bs