Football
ESPN staff 10y

Belgium given Vincent Kompany boost

Vincent Kompany is confident he has recovered sufficiently from a groin strain to lead Belgium against Russia on Sunday.

- Van Walle: Wilmots believes in Lukaku
- Yokhin: Russia worried by Belgium curse

The Belgium captain picked up the strain during Tuesday's 2-1 Group H win against Algeria and trained alone on Thursday and Friday.

On Saturday he returned to training alongside his Belgium teammates and told a reporter he expected to be fit enough to play.

"I am fine thanks," Kompany said before a training session at the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

"If everything goes well today, there shouldn't be any problems."

Kompany is Belgium's only doubt for the game, but they have plenty in reserve with Thomas Vermaelen, Laurent Ciman or Nicolas Lombaerts all available to replace the Manchester City defender.

Meanwhile, Belgium coach Marc Wilmots was surprised by Russia's slow start to the tournament, which saw them held to a 1-1 draw by South Korea, and claimed there is more pressure on Fabio Capello's side than there is on the Red Devils.

He said: "Our situation is good. We are not required to take the game to them. Algeria was a game that we had to win to get into a strong position.

"Now I think it's more Russia that has to take things in hand. Will they do it or not? That's the question."

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