Russia were never expected to beat Belgium on Saturday evening, however, Stanislav Cherchesov’s side were barely able to lay a glove on the Red Devils throughout the 90 minutes. They managed just a single shot on target and they simply get something from this game if they have any hopes of qualifying for the round of 16.
Injuries to Yuri Zhirkov and Daler Kuzyaev will hinder their preparations for this contest and it’s a very quick turnaround for both sides. Artem Dzyuba will be key to their chances in this game and the deliveries of Mario Fernandes could cause Finland a few problems.
Finland’s victory over Denmark was understandably overshadowed by a horrific incident involving Christian Eriksen, however, Markku Kanerva’s men managed to hold their nerve once the match was restarted and although they lived dangerously at times, they managed to keep the distracted Danes at arm’s length.
It’s hard to read too much into that victory, however, during qualifying, Finland were strong, robust and hard to score again.
They will set up in a similar manner here. They are simply too tempting a price.
