Russia’s confidence sky-high for Croatia

MOSCOW » It doesn’t matter that few Russian fans ever expected the hosts to reach the World Cup quarterfinals, midfielder Alexander Golovin is already thinking about the final.

The creative breakout star for Russia never doubted the team would perform well — long before it beat Spain on penalties in the round of 16, setting up a matchup with Croatia in Sochi on Saturday.

“We knew that everything was possible,” he said Wednesday. “Even before the beginning of the tournament we all understood that we could reach the final, we seriously counted on this and see this as the real state of things for us now.”

Croatia also reached the quarterfinals on penalties after overcoming a spirited Denmark team,

and is now aiming to match its best-ever World Cup: it made the semifinals in 1998.

Defender Domagoj Vida believes Croatia can take full advantage of being on what’s widely considered the easier side of the bracket.

“Now we are in the quarterfinals of the World Cup, which is a big success for us,” he said. “But our goals are higher. God willing, we would like to lift the World Cup trophy and that’s why we are here.”

The winner will play either England or Sweden in the semifinals.

Goalkeeper Danijel Subasic was Croatia’s star in

the round of 16 with three saves in the shootout. He’s predicting Russia will repeat its defensive style from the Spain game, when Spain had possession of the ball 75 percent of the game but couldn’t break through Russia’s deep and dedicated defense.

“I expect a defensiveminded Russia,” Subasic said. “We expect a tough match, as all the others.”

Golovin predicts Croatia will offer Russia more opportunities to score because of its style, compared to Spain’s endless passing.

“They don’t have the aim of controlling the ball during the whole match. Their goal is to reach a result,” Golovin said. “And in this sense it’s easier to play with such a team, in my opinion.”