World Cup shock and awe: Russia aren’t that bad
MOSCOW: Russia can afford to dream. The host nat ion defied critics and confounded expectations by easing past Egypt 3-1 on Tuesday, all but assuring their place in the last 16 of a World Cup for the first time since the Soviet era.
The free-scoring Russians – who have now struck eight times in just two matches – have lifted the home fans, who in turn have inspired the men in red on the pitch, for so long under- achievers at the highest level.
“Can you believe it?” Moscow’s Sport Express newspaper asked.
“We waited a very long time for this,” said Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov. They certainly have. Russia’s football team have been the poor relations of the nation’s ice hockey sides and Olympic legends, whose victories have long been a source of huge national pride.
President Vladimir Putin s a id that he expected Russia to lift the golden Wor l d C up trophy when he helped secure the hosting rights in 2010. B ut h e arguably had to that.
He was being wildly optimistic but the players gave the fans precious little reason for hope as the World
We waited a very long time for this. Pavel Kolobkov, Sports Minister
say Cup approached – coming into the tournament as the lowestranked nation, down at 70th in the world.
Russia were winless in seven games ahead of their opener, with almost their entire defence out with injuries. T he y h a d managed jus t one shot on target in their last two warmups and were getting whistled off the pitch by frustrated supporters. The nation w a s preparing for the wor s t by the time the World Cup kicked off last week but instead Russia ripped up the form book and performed a miracle.
They put five goals past Saudi Arabia, with two- goal Denis Cheryshev emerging as an instant star, before limiting Egypt’s star forward Mohamed Salah to just one goal from a penalty kick in their second game on Tuesday to stand on the brink of qualification.
Fans who had been pleasantly surprised after the performance against Saudi Arabia are now starting to believe, wondering how far this group of players can go.
The importance of Russian teams’ successes can often be measured by the number of accolades they receive from powerful politicians.
T he g u s h i n g wo r d s o f encouragement and support for coach Stanislav Cherchesov and his charges were coming thick and fast after their victory against Egypt.
The government- run RIA Novosti news agency called the team “23 happy brothers”.
A grinning Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev posted a photo on Facebook of him watching the Egypt game with his Belarussian counterpart Andrei Kobyakov. “Victory!” he wrote. Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko – the former sports minister who still oversees football in an unofficial capacity – said the squad was full of patriots.
“These are our best boys,” said Mutko. — AFP