Russia, defeated Spain for the first time in their World cup history yesterday. The match
which was played at the “Luzhniki” stadium in Moscow saw a determined Russian national side held off their star studded Spanish opponents in a dramatic fashion.
Goals scored in regular time Sergei Ignashevich (11, Own) and Tom Dzjuba (42) could not separate the two sides as the game went into extra time and was later decided by penalty shootout.
We capture comments from global sports media about the game
“Russia in its own way was magnificent.” The Russians were everywhere: they choked, resisted, rebuilt again and again, Oskar Tabares said that possession of the ball is an overrated factor, so Russia had not a ball more than 20 percent of the time.If Stanislav Cherchesov especially played before the penalty shootout, it’s just a brilliant maneuver.The Russians did not miss a single shot.Spain looked just crushed by the inability to defeat so average rival.And in the beginning everyone was afraid that Russia would not win any match at the tournament at all. behold, it beats a mighty Spain , albeit not in equal fight. “
BILD (Germany): “RUSSIAN FAIRY TALES CONTINUE”
“It’s crazy!” The Russian fairy tale continues – after a dramatic outcome in a penalty shoot-out, the team knocked Spain out of the tournament, because it was considered an obvious outsider of this World Cup. but it was already possible to surprise the top teams, and this is a big and probably the main surprise of the World Cup. “
L’EQUIPE (France): “AKINFEEV – HERO”
“It was the end of the Spanish system?” The team was too stubborn to score goals using their main chip – a pass, and as a result, it almost did not create dangerous moments, while the ruthless Russia calmly brought the case to a penalty shootout. Passes, passes, only passes, but not a single real opportunity to score a goal, Igor Akinfeev became the hero of the match, he repeatedly saved the team in the end of the meeting, and after the penalty shootout became even greater than before. “
EL MUNDO (Spain): “SPAIN LOST IN RUSSIAN ROULETTE”
“Spain could not beat the weaker team, it had neither the soul nor the strength to overcome one of the weakest opponents in the history of the tournament.” All ended with a series of penalties – Russian roulette. “Spain never had to bring the case to a penalty. – like an old aristocrat who survived the revolution, but can not adapt to the new reality.The Spaniards need to be proud of the past, but forget about it. “
LA GAZZETTA DELLO SPORT: “RUSSIA DOES NOT ALLOW A MISTAKE”
“An incredible match took place in the Luzhniki Stadium: Ignashevich’s own goal, Dzyuba’s penalty, then no game until the penalty shootout, and then Akinfeev turned into a hero, beating off two strikes.” What a miracle! “The Russians placed on the World Championship poster their best goalkeeper in history: Leo Yashin : The current goalkeeper, Igor Akinfeev , was never considered his worthy heir, but it was he who led the Russians into the quarterfinals after the team did not allow any mistakes in 120 minutes and deserved praise for excellent defense. “
The mood in Moscow after the match was ecstatic as we went to town to capture
the scene.
