Contrary to Shuster's forecast, the Russian team defeated the Saudis in the first match of the 2018 World Cup
The Russian national team crushingly defeated the Saudi Arabian team in the first match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
The meeting took place at the Luzhniki stadium and ended with a score of 5:0. The Russian team took the lead in the 12th minute of the match when midfielder Yuri Gazinsky scored the goal. In the 23rd minute, midfielder Alan Dzagoev received a hamstring injury and was replaced by Denis Cheryshev, who increased the advantage of the Russian team (43rd minute).
In the second half, striker Artem Dzyuba scored the third goal (71st minute). In the 91st minute, Cheryshev scored a double. The final score in extra time was set by Alexander Golovin with a free kick.
An hour before the match, the well-known former sports commentator Savik Shuster predicted a completely different outcome for the match, namely, a defeat for the Russian team.
Meanwhile, there are jokes on social networks that the success of the Russian national team was ensured by the presence of the head of the Chechen government, Ramzan Kadyrov, at the stadium. In particular, TV presenter Tina Kandelaki wrote about this,
“Slepakov was right, but @RKadyrov_95 hadn’t even reached the locker room yet,” she wrote.
The World Championship will last until July 15. The Russian team will also play against teams from Egypt and Uruguay.