Two weeks into the World Cup and the enthusiasm levels in Russia seem to be rise. Reports of overexposure to football have been highly exaggerated to say the least, given some of the football that has been on the show for the past 12 days.
Aided by the fact that the host nation, Russia has also embraced a thrilling and exuberant style means the locals are being entertained while at the same time exalting a national flavour to it. But this was a rude wake-up call, to say the least.
Uruguay buoyed by Luis Suarez was in full flow and the result spoke for itself. Russia though has to buckle up if they want to go further in the tournament. That said, there were enough talking points to keep everyone entertained.
1.Luis Suarez on target again
A smart free-kick led to the Uruguayan opening the score for his side as he arrowed into the bottom corner to the keeper’s left. Igor Afinkeev should be miffed with himself as he allowed himself to be beaten at his near post. The wall was taken out of play by the grounded free-kick but that shouldn’t have prevented the Russian keeper from covering his post. That said, Suarez enjoyed the outing and taking it upon himself to torment the Russian defence. The striker burst the bubble of the euphoric Samara stadium which was hosting the Russian football team for the first time.
2 Will Stanislav Cherchesov stick or twist?
A comprehensive defeat for Russia in a game which was the first challenge in this World Cup doesn’t augur well for the manager and the team. Having scored eight goals in victories over Saudi Arabia and Egypt, they were already guaranteed to progress but once they shipped in the early goal, things only got worse.
3 Cavani’s goal a cause for celebration
Right at the end, Cavani finally got his reward as he pounced on a loose ball to turn it into the Russian goal and register his and Uruguay’s third goal for the night. It was an excellent team goal as a whipped corner reached the unmarked head of Diego Godin who directed it goalwards.
4 Russia lacked dynamism
After eight goals in two matches, the atmosphere at the Samara stadium was expected to be a party atmosphere. The team though looked sluggish throughout and there was hardly any dynamism from the Russians. Whether the fact that they were missing their charismatic playmaker in the form of Aleksandr Golovin or if it was the stifling heat, one will never know.
5 Uruguay looks menacing
At the end of the game Oscar Tabarez, the Uruguayan coach made a very honest assessment of the game stating that Russia hadn’t pushed his side as hard as he expected. He said he had expected his side to win by more goals.