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Saturday night, Russia left the 2018 World Cup. For them it was the first time that the World Cup football was coming home, but asking him to stay home was a big piece. They tried, however
Entered this World Cup as the worst of the 32 participating teams, we expected little from Russia. There was definitely a home advantage factor to count and mitigate the shortcomings, but Russia was far from being a competent team in the World Cup when the 2018 edition debuted at the mid -June. This, however, has long been relegated to history when guests were inches away from their place for the first time in the World Cup semi-finals.
Saturday, Croatia – Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic "gold generation" vintage – had 120 minutes to break Russia, but could not. Last week, Spain, the 2010 champion, suffered the same fate. If bumping into Russia was considered a walk, the men of Stanislav Cherchesov did their best to prove otherwise. They almost had their second big scalp in Croatia, but a quarterfinal was all they could muster, a little deserved but fully off the expected lines.
Russian players in the penalty shootout against Croatia in the quarterfinals. Reuters
To say that the Russians came out of the World Cup head-on would be an understatement; they have proved to be wonderful ambassadors for sport in a country troubled by a widespread doping malaise that goes back several years and almost wrote a fairy tale despite this stigma.
Russia scored a lot of goals, conceded only once. The biggest win of the tournament, and played a brave and intense game with their full of footballers limited – not too bad for a team that in June, FIFA ranks below Panama, Peru, the only one in the world. Saudi Arabia and the other 28 teams. It only took the cruel fate of a penalty shootout to bring Russia out of this World Cup, but the tournament proved to be a record in history. of national football. From the first day they cleaned Saudi Arabia 5-0, the Russians only served to improve their mystique at every game game.
Their route into the knockouts was probably favorable, but their subsequent smothering , tiring and emotional dismantling of Spain in the round of 16 has written a new plan to counter the passing Iberian wizards. At the 2018 World Cup, Russia did not just hear loud noises and pack everything when things got tough. they left an indelible mark on the tournament in relative adversity at a time when expectations were surprisingly low.
The Cherchesov team took a straightforward direct approach, often in long balls to the big target Artem Dzyuba and midfield runners. . But there was a distinctive bravery about their approach, not completely giving up the advantage to their opponents and still having presence in the higher zones to cause trouble. Even against Croatia, which monopolized possession and dominated the territory, Russia was a significant goal threat throughout the 120 minutes and managed to score twice. Although few teams could match their physical prowess, Russia 's application and approach to gaming was mostly positive, a sign to be taken for the smaller football lights against imaginary adversaries. Cheryshev
While there were other candidates who played more minutes and probably better than Villarreal man, Cheryshev provided the highlights that will mark the first Russia's World Cup in the coming years. The former Real Madrid player was not even a key player at the start of the World Cup, but he grabbed his unlikely chance with both hands. He has engraved his name and cult status in the history of Russian football with four goals, two of which certainly deserve to be taken into account for the purpose of the tournament.
View Tournament: Roman Zobnin [19659002] An unknown relative of the rest of the world at the start of the World Cup, the 24-year-old athlete ended up being one of the most more constant of the tournament. Zobnin played every minute of the hosts' World Cup campaign and was their driving force from the midfield, often showing endless energy and dynamism. The man from Spartak Moscow is certainly the one to watch after this World Cup
Best goal: Cheryshev against Croatia, the quarterfinals
The curling effort of Cheryshev missed Danijel Subasic in the final quarter was a sight to behold. Having taken possession of the ball after winning a second ball, the 27-year-old has rolled straight to Croatia's bottom line and played a brace with Dzyuba. He then passed Modric's challenge to apply the finishing touch of every 25 yards – a special goal for a special occasion.
The Greatest Disappointment: Fyodor Smolov
Smolov fought for time in the presence of Dzyuba and had little impact on the proceedings in his limited time in the field . The 28-year-old has only had two attempts in his 219 minutes at a World Cup where he was supposed to carry the hopes of an entire nation. It can be said that Smolov did not fit with the best XI of Cherchesov, but Russia found itself with a feeling of what could have been by placing the minimal contribution of the # 10
Big transfer waits: Mario Fernandes
The Brazilian-born right-back was a bundle of energy and invention, providing a creative outlet wide throughout the tournament. It's Fernandes who tied Croatia in overtime, but his lack of penalties in the shootout made him insignificant. However, the 27-year-old has shown enough excitement at his first World Cup and could be the subject of a major transfer to an elite European league, being at CSKA Moscow since 2012.
Click here for full coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup
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