Historic triumph as Russia reach Euro playoffs
Published 19 June, 2008, 04:37
Russia are through to the knock-out phase of football’s European Championships for the first time in their modern history. A stylish 2-0 win over Sweden means they will now face the Netherlands in the quarter finals. It’s their best performance in the tournament since competing as part of the USSR side which reached the 1988 final.
Roman Pavlyuchenko scored in the first half and Andrey Arshavin, coming back after a two-match suspension, made it 2-0 just after the break.
The result means Russia finish second in Group D on six points, three ahead of Sweden. Spain won the group on nine points after winning all three games, including a 2-1 defeat of holders Greece on Wednesday night.
Russian supporters celebrated through the night. A sea of fans with national flags flooded through central Moscow, blocking traffic.
That’s becoming a tradition as Russian sportsmen are starting to spoil their supporters. Just last month there were similar scenes when the country became World Hockey Champions. And Zenit St. Petersburg became only the second Russian football club to win a European trophy after beating Glasgow Rangers in the UEFA Cup final.
Meanwhile, some Sweden fans found it hard to mask their disappointment, slumping over the fanzone barrier after the defeat, clutching their yellow and blue flags.
Russia had mixed results in their opening two games of the tournament. They lost to Spain 4-1 but ended Greek hopes with a 1-0 win in the second match.
Russia face the Netherlands this Saturday in Basel. The Dutch will be heavy favourites having been arguably the most impressive side in the tournament so far. But Russia could be helped by the fact their coach, Guus Hiddink, is Dutch, and will take huge confidence from the manner of their win over the Swedes.
The match will rekindle memories of the Euro '88 final in Germany, when the Soviet Union lost 2-0 to the Netherlands. The match is best remembered for a stunning volley by Marco Van Basten – now the Dutch coach – which is considered one of the greatest goals of all time.
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