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The rain could not dampen the spirits of those in the stands and following an extremely stirring rendition of the state anthem, Russia took to its charge. With the full knowledge that they must play to their vast potential in the coming week to force a showdown against Germany at Luzhniki in October, Guus Hiddink's men came out with intense resolve.
Without the services of Yuriy Zhirkov, Andrey Arshavin and Denis Kolodin, the Dutch manager tinkered with his lineup with the clear-cut vision of going on the attack from the opening whistle and not allowing the visitors a moment of ease. "Attack" was the call of the day as a quick peruse of the starting eleven lineup gave the tell-tale sign with the mercurial Diniyar Bilyaletdinov slotted in as left-back and Alexandr Anyukov on the opposite. The Army-Men's formidable lock-down trio of Sergey Ignashevich and Vasiliy Berezutsky took their spot in centre-back roles, in front of goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev with a central midfield of Sergey Semak and Igor Denisov. The attacking venom on the right and left wings came via Vladimir Bystrov, in his first match at Petrovsky since returning to Zenit and Konstantin Zyryanov with Alexandr Kerzhakov and Pavel Pogrebnyak paired up-top.
Russia, it is claret coloured kit, poured forward in an exhausting assault seconds into the match despite the slippery conditions. Three minutes in, Alexandr Kerzhakov latched onto to ball on the left side of the box and crossed to Roman Pavlyuchenko in point-blank range. Though the striker could not get his effort away it marked the shape of things to come as Russia barely lost possession of the ball in the opening forty-five minutes and kept the visitors on their heels. Pushing forward on the right flank Vladimir Bystrov, who was the recipient of a extremely warm response from the Zenit faithful in attendance with every touch of the ball, was being marked tightly by Franz Burgmeier but just shy of the thirteenth minute Konstantin Zyryanov slickly back-heeled him the ball but his effort from seven metres was turned aside by the Liechtenstein goalkeeper Peter Jehle in stunning fashion. Seconds later Russia was frustrated again as off the resulting corner Sergey Ignashevich headed the ball powerfully and though it seemed destined for the netting the visiting 'keeper turning his effort away on the line. However at the seventeenth minute Russia had the go-ahead goal as a poorly cleared corner was headed back by Sergey Ignashevich to Vasiliy Berezutsky, who slammed the ball into the netting from nine metres out. Continuing to pressure after the opener Russia was frustrated on a number of occasions with a final touch that were lacking the needed magic but six minutes prior to the break Igor Denisov was played into the area via a businesslike one-two with Konstantin Zyryanov, only to be brought down resulting in the spot being pointed to. Roman Pavlyuchenko stepped-up and the former Spartak Moskva-man confidently drove the ball into the back of the net to give Russia the 2-0 lead. A few minutes later the one black spot on Russia's day occurred as Igor Denisov was shown a yellow-card for a harsh challenge, disqualifying him for Wednesday's key match against Wales. Frustration continued for the hosts as quickly thereafter Sergey Semak sent a pin-point cross from the left to Konstantin Zyryanov in close range but the Zenit veteran shaped his foot poorly and sent the ball off-course, missing the wide open net. However Russia would grab the three-goal margin just before added-time was blown dead as Franz-Josef Vogt was adjudged a penalty after bringing down Dynamo's Alexandr Kerzhakov resulting in the spot being pointed to. Once again it was time Roman Pavlyuchenko to step-up and without fail he sent the ball to the back of the net to give Russia the 3-0 lead at the break.
From the restart Russia continued to pressure in an effort to add to its lead but as opposed to the opening half, the touch in the final third was lacking. Whether that was due to the difficult playing conditions or that ostensibly the day was fait de compli, high quality chances were at a premium. At hour Russia narrowly missed via a stunning effort at the hour as Roman Pavlyuchenko sent a looping half-volley of Alexandr Kerzhakov's cross over the ‘keeper and just wide of the opposite corner. A further goal bound effort by Vladimir Bystrov was pulled back with an offside call and Alexandr Kerzhakov felt victim to the flag being raised later on but regardless Russia grabbed the important confidence building 3-0 victory.
With the win the stage is set for a crucial match on Wednesday in Wales. Each champion has their steps to take to hoist the hardware, rights of passage that define the victors and those that stand in regret. Though there is a great deal left on the plate, Guus Hiddink and company travel to Cardiff knowing this and that a victory will transform the 10 October match against Germany into a showdown battle for the top spot of Group Four and an immediate spot in South Africa.
