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Russia World Cup 2018 profile: Ones to watch, best bets & more
As hosts, there will be a lot of expectation on the Russian side at the World Cup, can they devlier?
Russia Factfile
- FIFA World Ranking: 65
- Sky Bet outright winner odds: 50/1
- Best Bet: Russia to finish runners-up in the Group A at 6/4
- World Cup appearances: 10 (seven as the Soviet Union)
- Best World Cup finish: 4th-place (1966 - as Soviet Union)
- Nickname: Sbornaya (Team)
Coach - Stanislav Cherchesov: A former USSR and Russia goalkeeper, Cherchesov played in the 1994 and 2002 World Cups, before being appointed as manager in 2016. Previously manager of both Spartak and Dynamo Moscow, he also coached in Poland in 2015 as he steered Legia Warsaw to the double.
Legend - Lev Yashin: Oleg Salenko's five-goal haul in 1994 almost got him the nod but any talk of Russian football always comes back to the legendary goalkeeper. Although stats from 1950s and 60s can be sketchy, the imposing Yashin is credited with keeping 270 clean sheets and saving 150 penalties. He played in four World Cups, was named in FIFA's All-Time World Cup Team and is the only goalkeeper to receive the Ballon d'Or.
Star Man - Igor Akinfeev: The experienced goalkeeper is the team's leader on and off the field. He's made some high-profile mistakes during his time but with over 100 caps and six Russian league titles with CSKA Moscow he'll be the face of this team during the tournament.
Did you know? Russian coach Stanislav Cherchesov was the first captain of the newly independent Russia team after the former Soviet Union broke up.
Fun Fact: Such is the size of the country - there's 1500 miles between the World Cup stadia being used in the western (Kaliningrad) and eastern (Ekaterinburg) extremities of the host nation. For scale, that's about the same distance from London to Moscow.
Qualifying: As hosts they did not need to qualify.
Fixtures: Saudi Arabia (4pm, June 14, Moscow), Egypt (7pm, June 19, St Petersburg), Uruguay (3pm, June 25, Samara)
Russia squad
Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow), Vladimir Gabulov (Club Brugge), Andrey Lunev (Zenit St Petersburg).
Defenders: Vladimir Granat, Fedor Kudryashov (both Rubin Kazan), Ilya Kutepov (Spartak Moscow), Andrey Semenov (Akhmat Grozny), Sergei Ignashevich, Mario Fernandes (both CSKA Moscow), Igor Smolnikov (Zenit St Petersburg).
Midfielders: Yuri Gazinskiy (Krasnodar), Alexsandr Golovin, Alan Dzagoev (both CSKA Moscow), Aleksandr Erokhin, Yuri Zhirkov, Daler Kuzyaev (all Zenit St Petersburg), Roman Zobnin, Alexsandr Samedov (both Spartak Moscow), Anton Miranchuk (Lokomotiv Moscow), Denis Cheryshev (Villarreal).
Forwards: Artem Dzyuba (Arsenal Tula), Aleksey Miranchuk (Lokomotiv Moscow), Fedor Smolov (Krasnodar).
Russia Profile
They may be outsiders to lift the trophy in front of their own supporters, but Russia have a decent record of World Cup finals appearances.
They’ve made it through ten of their 15 qualification attempts and made an appearance in 2014 despite failing to reach the previous two tournaments.
Russia will host the World Cup for the first time and naturally line-up in Group A, alongside Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Uruguay.
Their best ever appearance on the major stage came back in England 1966 as the Soviet Union. They finished fourth after losing the third-place match to Portugal, with the unstoppable Eusebio finding the net in a 2-1 victory.
Who to watch out for
Like most sides, there are a few players that will catch the eye but Igor Akinfeev will be seen as the key man for the Russians.
The goalkeeper has over 100 appearances for his country, alongside being the captain and an influential figure within the squad.
Elsewhere, Fedor Smolov should be the man leading the line up front and he’ll be looked to as someone who can make the difference if they are to impress.
The 28-year-old has started the last eleven matches for his country and that should continue when they meet Saudi Arabia on June 14.
Smolov has struck 12 times for Krasnodar this season, and will be hopeful of adding more to his tally at the World Cup.
How did they qualify?
As hosts, Russia had the easiest qualification route out of any side.
They automatically got a spot at the tournament, but have been playing friendlies in the absence of a qualification campaign.
Their friendly outings have not been too promising though, apart from a 3-3 draw with Spain, as they've drawn with Iran and lost to the likes of Argentina, France and Brazil.
Any interesting facts about Russia?
It is home to the Trans-Siberian Railway, the longest railway in the world, which stretches the length of 9,289 kilometres (5,772 miles).
Feeling peckish if you’re over there? Not to worry, one of the largest McDonald’s restaurants in the world is located on Pushkin Square in Moscow.
There are 700 seats available on the inside, and 5,000 people queued for over six hours to get a taste of the food when it first opened its doors back in January 1990.
Moscow’s metro system sees trains every 90 seconds during rush hour, whilst the subway in St. Petersburg will take a bit of travelling down to get to, sitting 100m below the surface.
Any famous football moments?
Whilst they may have experienced little success at the World Cup, Russia has more joy at the Olympics and secured the gold medal as the Soviet Union back in 1956.
The team had Lev Yashin, regarded as one of the finest goalkeepers in football, alongside Anatoli Ilyin who struck in the final.
They also picked up gold in 1988, beating Diego Maradona’s Argentina along the way.
Alongside the Olympics, they also were victorious in the first ever European Championships in 1960.
That said, there were only four teams in the tournament. Regardless, victories over Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia helped them lift the trophy.