Wilmots fires in Belgium's third goal (Allsport)

By Ian Parkes, PA Sport, Shizuoka

Two goals in the final 12 minutes of a pulsating clash set up Belgium for a World Cup second-round showdown with new tournament favourites Brazil.

Striker Wesley Sonck and captain Marc Wilmots, capping a superb man-of-the-match performance, fired home the goals to end Belgium's miserable run of seven World Cup matches without a victory.

With co-hosts Japan topping Group H following their fine win over Tunisia in Osaka, Belgium just managed to hang on to the runners-up spot as Russia threatened a stunning comeback at the Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa.

But for coach Oleg Romantsev's side it was too little too late, although at one stage they were within sight of a date with the brilliant Brazilians in Kobe on Monday.

Needing a draw to guarantee their place in the last 16, they started the match in disastrous fashion, albeit conceding one of the goals of the tournament to date, and one of which England skipper David Beckham would be proud.

Andrei Solomatin's shirt tug on Wilmots led to Walem scoring only his second goal in 36 appearances, with the 30-year-old Standard Liege midfielder sweeping a 24-yard left-foot free-kick over the Russian wall and into the left-hand corner of keeper Ruslan Nigmatullin's net.

Glen de Boeck and Gert Verheyen both missed glorious chances to double Belgium's lead just before the break, seven minutes after which Vladimir Bestchastnykh hauled Russia level.

Dmitry Khokhlov's through ball picked out advancing Dmitri Sychev, the 18-year-old hailed as the hottest property in Russian football, only for his goal-bound flick to be superbly blocked at point-blank range by Geert de Vlieger.

Unfortunately for de Vlieger, the ball spun off his body and into the path of Spartak Moscow striker Bestchastnykh to sidefoot home from eight yards, with a diving Daniel van Buyten unable to prevent it from crossing the line.

It was now Belgium in need of the qualifying goal, and they continued to look the more dangerous side, and indeed should have regained the lead inside two minutes.

Wilmots first sliced Mbo Mpenza's byline ball with the goal at his mercy, but just as with Russia's equaliser, the ball then fell kindly to Walem.

However, after a first touch to control, he could not complete his brace as he stabbed his six-yard shot into the sidenetting.

Belgium, though, were not to be denied and within eight minutes of coming on as a sub for Mpenza, Anderlecht star Sonck headed home a Walem corner from just six yards.

The insurance goal followed four minutes later from Wilmots as he turned inside the challenge of Yuri Kovtun after receiving a through ball from Bart Goor before firing a crisp, 18-yard right-foot shot beyond Nigmatullin.

It proved vital for in the 88th minute Sychev sublimely pulled one back as he slipped a close-range shot past the advancing de Vlieger, but it was all in vain.

Unsurprisingly, the loudest cheer of the afternoon came after the final whistle when the score from Japan's 2-0 triumph was flashed up on the two giant scoreboards at either end of the ground - but at least the local fans had been treated to a thriller.

Teams

Belgium: de Vlieger, Van Buyten, Van Kerckhoven, Peeters, De Boeck (Van Meir 90), Verheyen (Simons 78), Walem, Vanderhaeghe, Goor, Wilmots, Mpenza (Sonck 70).

Subs Not Used: Boffin, Deflandre, Englebert, Herpoel, Strupar, Thijs, Van Der Heyden, Vandendriessche, Vermant.

Booked: Vanderhaeghe.

Goals: Walem 7, Sonck 78, Wilmots 82.

Russia: Nigmatullin, Kovtun, Solomatin, Onopko, Nikiforov (Sennikov 43), Karpin (Kerzhakov 83), Smertin (Sychev 34), Titov, Khokhlov, Alenichev, Beschastnykh.

Subs Not Used: Cherchesov, Chugainov, Daev, Filimonov, Izmailov, Mostovoi, Pimenov, Semak, Semshov.

Booked: Solomatin, Smertin, Alenichev, Sennikov.

Goals: Beschastnykh 53, Sychev 89.

Att: 46,640

Ref: K Nielsen (Denmark).