Russia
How'd they get here: Won qualifying Group B
Last Appearance: Euro 2008 (semi-finals)
Best Appearance: Euro 1960 (Champions as U.S.S.R.)
Schedule:
June
8 vs Czech Republic
June
12 vs Poland
June
16 vs Greece
The Story:
The Russians came out of Euro 2008 as undoubtedly the talk of the tournament. A semi-final berth at the expense of the Netherlands had everyone rightfully talking about Guus Hiddink's side. The 3-0 loss to eventual winner Spain did nothing to quell people's opinion that this Russian side was a team on the rise. 4 years later and one failed World Cup qualifying campaign (for the 2010 World Cup) has caused several changes for a Russian team that no one knows what to expect from.
The first change being behind the bench, gone is "Lucky" Guus replaced by fellow Dutchman Dick Advocaat. Andrei Arshavin (now the team's captain) is no longer the darling of Europe but rather a frustratingly inconsistent Arsenal FC Player that has struggled in the last couple of EPL seasons. A player that will have to step up if Russia has any aspirations in matching (or topping) Euro 2008's showing. The team is also entering the tournament with unusual circumstances as it is known that Advocaat is stepping down from the bench after the competition. Whether or not this will have an effect or not on the psyche of the Russian players remains to be seen.
The Russian squad consists of (much like Ukraine) mostly players from its domestic league with the majority of them coming from Zenit St. Petersburg. The one position Russian fans need not worry about is at goalie where highly touted and sought after Igor Akinfeev will be manning the goal. Russia's back four has been dominant as of late too with only 4 goals allowed in 10 qualifying matches. The defense will be effective but not well-known to people outside of ones that follow the Russian domestic league carefully. The one exception to this is left back Yuri Zhirkov, a player who had a brief stint at Chelsea will be essential in the Russian attack as he will need to come up continuously for support on the flank.
The midfield should be solid enough with 21 year old Alan Dzagoev being regarded as one of the young players to watch in the tournament. This only leaves the attacking force of the Russians which will likely determine how far they go in the competition. On paper the forwards seem like a competent bunch with Roman Pavlyuchenko, Pavel Pogrebnyak, and the previously mentioned Arshavin all seeming like suitable options for Advocaat. However the only one in form of the 3 has been Pogrebnyak (coming off a productive year for Fulham in the EPL) as both Pavlyuchenko (had to leave Tottenham for Moscow in order to get playing time) and Arshavin (been hard to watch in every Arsenal game I saw this season) come into the tournament struggling.
Whether or not one of those 2 can step up will probably be the determining factor in how far this team goes. Regardless of that, not getting past the group stage would have to be seen as a disappointment. Russia is by far the most talented team in the extremely weak Group A (all four teams have been listed so far in the countdown). I predict they'll make it past the group stage only to be knocked out by whatever team makes it out of Group B.
This song is probably seriously overplayed by the radio in Moscow. Seems to be the equivalent of David Guetta ft (insert any female pop star) only in Russian. I also have no idea what the video is supposed to mean. Just looks like a bunch of random scenes in sequence. At least the beat is decent though.
Reasons to cheer for Russia:
If you were cheering for Drago, if THIS is your favorite meme, if you thought every single one of Andrei Kirilenko's hairstyles looked good, if you think Ovechkin > Crosby, if you got mad when Tom Cruise blew up the Kremlin, if you don't want to watch any more Poland, Greece, or Czech Republic games then you have to, if you're still mad at Enrique for bagging Anna Kournikova, if you still think Marat Safin can make a legitimate comeback, if Black Widow is your favorite avenger and Kraven the Hunter your favorite Spider-Man character, if you're Russian.
Previous Teams
#16 - Greece
#15 - Ukraine
#14 - Poland
#13 - Czech Republic
#12 - Croatia
#11 - Sweden
Countdown will continue tomorrow with Team #10!
Luka Milanovic
The first change being behind the bench, gone is "Lucky" Guus replaced by fellow Dutchman Dick Advocaat. Andrei Arshavin (now the team's captain) is no longer the darling of Europe but rather a frustratingly inconsistent Arsenal FC Player that has struggled in the last couple of EPL seasons. A player that will have to step up if Russia has any aspirations in matching (or topping) Euro 2008's showing. The team is also entering the tournament with unusual circumstances as it is known that Advocaat is stepping down from the bench after the competition. Whether or not this will have an effect or not on the psyche of the Russian players remains to be seen.
The Russian squad consists of (much like Ukraine) mostly players from its domestic league with the majority of them coming from Zenit St. Petersburg. The one position Russian fans need not worry about is at goalie where highly touted and sought after Igor Akinfeev will be manning the goal. Russia's back four has been dominant as of late too with only 4 goals allowed in 10 qualifying matches. The defense will be effective but not well-known to people outside of ones that follow the Russian domestic league carefully. The one exception to this is left back Yuri Zhirkov, a player who had a brief stint at Chelsea will be essential in the Russian attack as he will need to come up continuously for support on the flank.
The midfield should be solid enough with 21 year old Alan Dzagoev being regarded as one of the young players to watch in the tournament. This only leaves the attacking force of the Russians which will likely determine how far they go in the competition. On paper the forwards seem like a competent bunch with Roman Pavlyuchenko, Pavel Pogrebnyak, and the previously mentioned Arshavin all seeming like suitable options for Advocaat. However the only one in form of the 3 has been Pogrebnyak (coming off a productive year for Fulham in the EPL) as both Pavlyuchenko (had to leave Tottenham for Moscow in order to get playing time) and Arshavin (been hard to watch in every Arsenal game I saw this season) come into the tournament struggling.
Whether or not one of those 2 can step up will probably be the determining factor in how far this team goes. Regardless of that, not getting past the group stage would have to be seen as a disappointment. Russia is by far the most talented team in the extremely weak Group A (all four teams have been listed so far in the countdown). I predict they'll make it past the group stage only to be knocked out by whatever team makes it out of Group B.
#1 Song in Russia at the moment
This song is probably seriously overplayed by the radio in Moscow. Seems to be the equivalent of David Guetta ft (insert any female pop star) only in Russian. I also have no idea what the video is supposed to mean. Just looks like a bunch of random scenes in sequence. At least the beat is decent though.
Reasons to cheer for Russia:
If you were cheering for Drago, if THIS is your favorite meme, if you thought every single one of Andrei Kirilenko's hairstyles looked good, if you think Ovechkin > Crosby, if you got mad when Tom Cruise blew up the Kremlin, if you don't want to watch any more Poland, Greece, or Czech Republic games then you have to, if you're still mad at Enrique for bagging Anna Kournikova, if you still think Marat Safin can make a legitimate comeback, if Black Widow is your favorite avenger and Kraven the Hunter your favorite Spider-Man character, if you're Russian.
Previous Teams
#16 - Greece
#15 - Ukraine
#14 - Poland
#13 - Czech Republic
#12 - Croatia
#11 - Sweden
Countdown will continue tomorrow with Team #10!
Luka Milanovic
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