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Fabio Capello: Russia were unlucky

Russia manager Fabio Capello was pleased with his side's display against Belgium despite being on the wrong end of a 1-0 defeat.

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The Red Devils had to rely on a first international goal from 19-year-old striker Divock Origi to settle a tight and often dreary contest against Capello's men.

Origi's strike came in the 88th minute, and the former England boss feels Russia were unlucky not to get anything out of the match.

"We had a chance to score twice, but that's football. The performance of the team was good, I'm disappointed for the players," Capello told his postmatch news conference.

"Frankly, I'm happy with the performance. The result is unfair, but we had clear chances to win. Both teams tried to give it their all and win. Unfortunately, it was Belgium who was able to get the win."

Capello added: "I thought the match was played with great pace and intensity and was a very interesting one. Because of this, we made mistakes and so did they."

The victory means Belgium have now qualified for the knockout stages, while Russia, who drew 1-1 with South Korea in their opening game, need to get a result in their final match against Algeria and hope other results go their way if they are to join the Red Devils.

"We will see what happens today [South Korea vs. Algeria], but we'll see if beating Algeria will help us move ahead into the next round," Capello said, before going on to talk up this year's tournament.

"I think it's a wonderful World Cup. The stadia are absolutely full of people. The football being played is at a top-notch level and fast. This is evidence that all the teams and coaches are very strong and well prepared."