Sergey Semak and Aleksey Berezutsky trained on their own for the second half of the session, while Yury Zhirkov – who has not played for Chelsea recently because of yet another injury setback – came through practice without any problems. Hiddink says all of them should be fine come Saturday.

Russia are the clear favorites to win the upcoming play-off against the Slovenian side that contains just a few stars from around Europe.

However, they have beaten some decent sides like the Czech Republic and Poland over the past year, and the Zenit Saint Petersburg midfielder Igor Semshov isn't taking Russia's opponents lightly.

“We all understand just what a very important match this is for us, and the second leg as well of course, as next week we will know whether we will be going to the World Cup, or watching it on TV,” Igor Semshov said. “We are all feeling upbeat, but we are fully focused on the task ahead.”

There are not too many new faces in Hiddink's squad for the two matches against the Slovenians. The Lokomotiv Moscow striker Dmitry Sychev won a recall as, following a slow start to the season, he scored 11 goals in his last 15 games for his club.

However, there are no places for Aleksandr Ryazantsev and Roman Sharonov, who both played starring roles for Rubin in their recent Champions League matches with Barcelona.

However, Hiddink says he is pleased that there is a lot of competition for places in the starting 11.

“Everybody wants to play in the national team and that’s very good. And whenever the player is not playing they have to support the team. That’s the key for me,” the Dutchman said.

The next few days will be crucial for all the players in Hiddink's squad to stake their claim for a starting spot on Saturday.

And with Russia playing the second leg away next Saturday, the Dutchman will be looking for a good win on Saturday to take to Slovenia.