Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez hopes to end 40 years of World Cup disappointment by guiding his side to the semi-finals at least.

The South Americans have not made the last four since 1970 in Mexico and, having failed to qualify for three of the previous five tournaments, the last time they made it out of group stage was in Italy 20 years ago.

But having taken four points from their first two Group A games the need only a draw against Mexico to put themselves through at the expense of hosts South Africa and 1998 winners France.

Uruguay are two-time World Cup winners themselves but the second of those triumphs came way back in 1950, although the weight of that history hangs heavy on every generation of players.

However, Tabarez believes the current squad have a real opportunity to achieve something in South Africa.

"We came to this World Cup in the hope that we would do something different to what Uruguay has done since the 1970s," he said.

"We've never come close to third or fourth place.

"We are convinced that we can win the World Cup. There might be teams that are better than us but we are convinced that we can be a tough rival for any team."