The Russians Have It In Them To Win

Just a couple of days ago I had praised Holland for their fantastic football but the Russians proved against Holland that they too play amazing football. Even so that they out played Holland with exquisite performances from Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andrei Arshavin. The two biggest revelations of this Euro and it is no surprise that some of the biggest European clubs are after these two. Yet, the team as a whole has been absolutely impressive. Against  Holland, it was the Russians that looked more like the clock work orange than Holland itself. This is a far cry from the Russians side we encountered against Spain, where they lost 4-1.

Still, if there is one person to thank for all of Russia’s grandeur in the Euro it would have to be the genius Guus Hiddink. He is the mastermind behind the well oiled machine that is the Russians. He was right to call up Arshavin even when he knew he would not be able to play the first games of the euro and fixed the problems of his team after the Spanish defeat. He has trained and disciplined these boys to the best Hiddink matter. He has instilled his football philosophy into his young disciples and they have obeyed. “There is a reason why the Russians compete and win gold”, a quote I once heard and it describes this national side to the perfection. Their competitive edge is  something to admire of, beside their entertaining football. Russia is already the surprise team of the Euro but they want to continue to leave more mouths open when they face Spain in the semifinals this Thursday. A task that can happen.

Spain would have to be ignorant to be believe that this is the same squad they faced in their first meeting. Even Aragones recognises that he will not be able to fool Hiddink with the same tricks. It would be a mistake by the players to be confident and think it will be a walk in the park. Russia will not easily trip over the same rock twice. So far, there have not been any teams that have really attacked Spain and it is well known that the Spanish defensive line is the Achilles heel of this squad. With the way the Russians have been playing and attacking, they could cause havoc for Spain. La Furia may seem as the favorites but I would not count this Russian side out. In 90 minutes anything can happen.