Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez believes the opportunity to mix with the best at the World Cup is bringing the greatest football out of his players.

The South Americans finished top of Group A after a 1-0 win over Mexico on Tuesday to move into the last 16 where they will next face South Korea.

Tabarez said: "In the qualifying round, we had good moments and bad moments. We thought if we managed to qualify for the World Cup, we would then have the better environment to work. You see a World Cup has a different motivation...great teams, great players and the qualifying round in South America is something else."