Jonathan Davies is content for Wales to remain under the radar heading into their Guinness Six Nations opener against France.
Wales will tackle Les Bleus in Paris on the back of a nine-Test unbeaten run that included winning all four autumn games this season.
Victory at Stade de France on Friday would secure a longest winning sequence since 1999, while they have also defeated France six times from the last seven attempts.
Wales are third favourites with most bookmakers to land a first Six Nations title for six years, and some observers have already billed Saturday's clash between Ireland and England as a championship decider.
"It doesn't bother me," Scarlets centre Davies said.
"We've got to play France on Friday night and make sure we go out there and get the result. After what we hope will be a good result, our focus switches to Italy.
"We need to focus on our own jobs, and we've got a lot to prepare and get ready for. We can't look beyond France on Friday."
Asked about being under the radar, Davies added: "I think it suits us, but it doesn't really bother us what people are saying or whether we're contenders or not.
"I am just making sure we have a good week of training, and whoever gets selected does a good job for the team.
"Hopefully, we can go out to Paris and start our Six Nations campaign with a win."
Recent history in the fixture favours Wales, while they have not tasted defeat against any opponent since losing to Ireland midway through last season's Six Nations.
Davies, though – especially having spent two seasons playing for French heavyweights Clermont Auvergne – knows all about France's danger.
"It is making sure we build the lead, stay in the arm-wrestle and don't give France opportunities to play," he added.
"They do love playing with ball in hand, but our defensive focus these last couple of weeks has been making sure we limit the opportunities we give a potent team like France.
"If we start well, get into the game, build the performance, then we can hopefully control the game from there.
"We are not looking further than Friday night – it's a massive game.
"It is vital we go out to Paris with a focus of putting our stamp on the game, making sure we get into the right areas of the field and play correctly.
"It's a tough start, but getting the result will be massive for us moving forward into the campaign."
