Welcoming locals, excited fans, training camp sing-a-longs, birthday greetings and pin-point set pieces are all included in a selection of some of the best social media content from Asia's World Cup sides from the last week before today's big kick-off.

Younghusband said Asian football has made tremendous inroads in the last 10 years and the Philippines captain expects one, if not several, to enjoy extended runs in Russia 2018.

"Asian teams are competing against the best from Europe and South America and I will not be surprised if one, if not more, do very well in the World Cup," said Younghusband, who is preparing for the Philippines' maiden appearance at the AFC Asian Cup in UAE 2019.

Asia will have a record five teams - Australia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Korea Republic, Japan and Saudi Arabia - competing in Russia 2018 and Chhetri, who recently equalled Lionel Messi of Argentina on 64 international goals, hopes all do well.

"As an Asian, I am going to root for them and I just hope they have a fantastic World Cup." said the Blue Tigers' talisman, whose two goals gave India a 2-0 win over Kenya to clinch the Intercontinental Cup 2018 on Sunday.

The former Manchester City stalwart said Asian football has been progressing rapidly and Asia's five teams - Australia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Korea Republic, Japan and Saudi Arabia - will surely do their best in Russia 2018.

"Their target, besides advancing to the Knockout Stage, will be to show that Asian teams are closing in on European and South American sides," said Sun Jihai in an exclusive interview with the-AFC.com.

With the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia about to kick-off, we've collected all our preview content in one place for your enjoyment.

Expert views, team analysis, historical features, players to watch, goals to remember and much more.

Eleven years after the foundation of AFC, DPR Korea were pitted against Australia, South Africa and Korea Republic in the first round of qualifying for the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England. South Africa was then banned by FIFA due to apartheid, and Korea Republic withdrew, leaving DPR Korea and Australia to compete for the World Cup ticket.

Reims – On a typical summer day in June of 1938, the Dutch East Indies lined up in a first round match at the second edition of the FIFA World Cup against Hungary. The Hungarians’ 6-0 win over their opponents that day may have been straightforward, but the Asian side’s journey towards discovering their identity as a football team was anything but.