The Russian “Golden Eagles” spread their wings and soared high after defeating Spain 4-3 (1-1) with a penalty shootout on Sunday. The Russian players’ persistence and self-confidence rendered Spain’s domination and “tiki-taka” playing style meaningless.
By
HERPIN DEWANTO
·4 minutes read
REUTERS/KAI PFAFFENBACH
Soccer: Russian goalie Igor Akinfeev saves a penalty kick from Spain\'s Iago Aspas during the penalty shootout on July 1, 2018 in the World Cup’s Round of 16 at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia.
MOSCOW, SUNDAY – The Russian “Golden Eagles” spread their wings and soared high after defeating Spain 4-3 (1-1) with a penalty shootout at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday (1/7/2018). The Russian players’ persistence and self-confidence rendered Spain’s domination and “tiki-taka” playing style meaningless.
The match finished with a penalty shootout, as the score remained tied at 1-1, even after a 30-minute injury time. Russian goalie Igor Akinfeev became a hero for his fellow countrymen after he saved the Russian goal from Spaniards Koke’s and Iago Aspas’s penalty kicks.
Russia’s victory seems to reaffirm that an effective playing style is better than ball domination in the 2018 World Cup. Earlier, Argentina and Portugal lost to their respective opponents France and Uruguay, despite dominating the ball for more than 58 percent of their respective matches.
“[The Russians] sustained their self-confidence in an extraordinary situation in the presence of their fans,” said former England striker Alan Shearer, as quoted by the BBC.
Spain dominated the ball for up to 74 percent of the match, but seemed to lack a proper strategy. It gained its single point from Sergey Ignashevich’s own goal. On the other hand, the Russians displayed daring tactics in scoring against Spain through Artem Dzyuba’s penalty kick equalizer.
Russia’s victory brought it one step closer to repeating its achievement in the Soviet Union era, when it reached the semifinals in the 1966 World Cup in the United Kingdom.
Ever since the country became the Russian Federation in 1991, its national football team had qualified for the World Cup only four times, only to be eliminated in the group stage.
In the quarterfinals, Russia will face the victor of the Croatia-Denmark match to be held early Monday, Jakarta time. Russia’s victory against Spain will surely boost the team’s self-confidence.
Croatia is known for its fierce strikers and powerful midfielders. Russia will need to reinforce its midfield to hold back Croatia’s attacks. Meanwhile, Denmark is known for its tight defense and swift attacks, similar to the Russian team. It will be a heated duel if they meet.
Russia has begun to find a style of play that suits them, relying on a tight defense and swift attacks from both wings. Their excellent stamina and speed will also be invaluable in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, for Spain, its defeat to Russia is the latest in its history of losses to World Cup hosts, which began with its loss to Italy in the 1934 World Cup quarterfinals. In the 1950 World Cup, Spain was eliminated in the group stage thanks to host team Brazil. In the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals, South Korea defeated Spain in a penalty shootout.
Spain tried to dominate the ball early in the game to confine Russia’s defense. Spain’s short assists made it difficult for Russia to take the ball and build a strategy. Despite its dominant play, Spain was ultimately overwhelmed by Russia’s tight defense. It was difficult for Spanish front man Diego Costa to get assists from his teammates.
Spain’s first goal in the 12th minute was a matter of luck. Marco Asensio’s free kick hit Ignashevich’s calf and ricocheted into the Russian goal.
Afterwards, Russia tried to retaliate from both ends. It relied on its players’ speed and stamina to attack the Spanish defense every time it had possession.
Seemingly in a panic due to Russia’s attacks, Spanish striker Fransisco “Isco” Roman Alarcon Suarez kicked the ball over the goal line, resulting in a corner kick for Russia. The corner kick became a nightmare for Spain, as a header by a Russian player hit Gerard Pique’s hand. The referee ordered a penalty kick. Artem Dzyuba made the shot, his third in the World Cup, and equalized to 1-1.
In the second half, despite Andres Iniesta and Iago Aspas joining, Spain could not step up its game. The match then ended in a penalty shootout. Russian players Fedor Smolov, Sergei Ignashevich, Aleksandr Golovin and Denis Cheryshev scored goals, while two of Spain’s penalty kickers, Koke and Aspas, failed to score goals.
