Moscow—Russia coach Stanislav Cherchesov believes the World Cup hosts’ shock victory over title contenders Spain on penalties following a 1-1 draw in the last 16 on Sunday (Monday in Manila) “is only the beginning.”
Captain Igor Akinfeev saved two penalties as Russia triumphed 4-3 in a dramatic shootout in Moscow to reach a first quarter-final since the Soviet era, in 1970.
“I’m not the man of the match, the man of the match is our team and our fans,” said Akinfeev, after each converted penalty, and his saves from Koke and Iago Aspas were greeted with a deafening roar from a crowd of 78,011 at the Luzhniki Stadium.
Meanwhile, Brazil will look to keep their bid for a record sixth World Cup crown on track when they face Mexico on Monday (Tuesday in Manila) with a quarter-final place at stake, after seeing Spain join the list of contenders to be eliminated.
The other last-16 game sees a much-fancied Belgium take on a Japan side who are dreaming of reaching the quarters for the first time after scraping through their group thanks to their fair-play record.
While Neymar’s Brazil, and a Belgian outfit inspired by Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku, are both expected to advance, events of the weekend have shown that nothing can be taken for granted.
Croatia also won on penalties, defeating Denmark 3-2 in the shoot-out following another 1-1 draw, with Luka Modric having a spot-kick saved late in extra time.
The Croats look like serious contenders, while for Spain their elimination is a disaster—they had been considered among the favorites but had their preparations ruined when coach Julen Lopetegui was sensationally sacked on the eve of the tournament.
They join 2014 winners Germany, Argentina, and European champions Portugal in being knocked out of a competition for which neither Italy nor the Netherlands—two of the great World Cup names—even qualified.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, the two great individuals of the last decade, have gone home, their hopes of ever winning the World Cup probably over.
But Neymar is still dreaming of leading Brazil to glory, and his side takes on Mexico in the Volga river port city of Samara at 1400 GMT. Coach Tite insists his talisman is now approaching his best form again, four months after undergoing surgery on a fractured foot.
“Now, he’s returned to a very high level. He’s played a lot… I told him, and he knows, about the price he’s had to pay to get back to this level,” said Tite.
Russia was largely expected to just make up the numbers at their own tournament after entering with a seven-match win-ess run and ranked the lowest of the 32 teams.
Cherchesov has masterminded a remarkable upturn in fortunes, with back-to-back wins over Saudi Arabia and Egypt to launch their campaign sparking a wave of national euphoria.
They rode that support, and occasionally their luck, to recover from falling behind to a 12th-minute own goal from Sergei Ignashevich.
Artem Dzyuba equalized with a penalty shortly before half-time after Spain defender Gerard Pique was punished for a handball.
Russia’s defense then held firm as Spain dominated possession before the heroics of Akinfeev triggered wild celebrations in the rain.
However, Cherchesov refused to get carried away and spoke like a man on a mission after his side booked a quarter-final clash with Croatia or Denmark.
“I believe that it’s only the beginning, so I have to save my emotions for the future,” said Cherchesov, who at times gestured towards the crowd to lift the noise levels.
“Today we found the right place at the right time and we achieved the maximum we could.”
“Now it’s over and I’m thinking only about the next game. These are very simple, not very sophisticated emotions,” he added.
“It wasn’t open football on our part. They are better than us in many ways, so I don’t believe we should risk going forward, and I think we chose the correct tactic.”
Spain joined fellow heavyweights Germany and Argentina in making a premature exit, raising questions as to the wisdom of sacking Julen Lopetegui on the eve of the competition.
Lopetegui was axed by the Spanish federation with the team already in Russia after agreeing on a deal to become the Real Madrid coach next season.
Spain came to the finals unbeaten in 20 matches since Lopetegui took over following Euro 2016, with the 2010 world champions winning just once in four games with Hierro at the helm.
“I accept the responsibility, I am the head coach. If anyone needs to shoulder this responsibility it’s me,” said the former Real Madrid captain.
“I have nothing to hold against anybody. I put my reputation out there because that’s what my job required.”
The defeat also marked the end an of glittering international career for Andres Iniesta, who was brought on midway through the second half for his 131st and final Spain appearance.