Spain vs Russia LIVE World Cup 2018: Hosts knock Spanish out in penalty shootout as Igor Akinfeev saves Koke and Iago Aspas efforts
Follow all the live coverage from the first knockout round of the World Cup
Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for free
Sign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter
It’s not been smooth sailing for Spain in the competition so far. Their 1-0 win over Iran is their only win in the tournament so far. They were all over the Iranian side all game but they struggled to find the net. Their poor defending has led to them conceding five goals in the competition so far. The Spaniards will need to fix their defensive issues ahead of Sunday’s game against the tournament hosts.
Russia opened the tournament with an explosive game against Saudi Arabia. Their dominant 5-0 win was closely followed by another strong victory over an Egyptian side that struggled massively this World Cup. Russia were served a bit of a reality check when they faced the Group A winner Uruguay in the final match of the group stage.
Their 3-0 defeat highlighted some major issues with the team. The Russian national side will be without right-back Igor Smolnikov. The 29-year-old Russian defender earned his second yellow just 36 minutes into the game after a mistimed challenge on Deigo Laxalt. Russia, who have already been experiencing defensive issues, will need to find a strong replacement for Smolnikov.
Follow all the live action below...
Please allow a moment for the blog to load...
What time is it?
Spain vs Russia kicks off at 15:00 at the Luzhniki Stadium.
Where can I watch it?
Live coverage will be available on either the BBC or ITV and online via their sports website.
World Cup 2018: Team of the group stage
Show all 11Odds
- Spain: 4/7
- Russia: 11/2
- Draw: 11/4
Prediction
Spain will still be feeling the pain from their 2-2 draw against Morocco and will go into this game with it at the forefront of their minds. Russia will need to correct the weaknesses that were exposed by Uruguay in the final game of the group stage. Spain are heavily favoured to win.
Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of today's World Cup last-16 encounter between Spain and Russia, brought to you from the Luzhniki Stadium.
After yesterday's two games of high scoring, exciting football, day two of the round of 16 ties brings us our first mismatch on paper. Hosts Russia, who have impressed so far, come up against the stars of Spain.
But history tells us low ranked teams can often spring an upset - anyone need reminding of Iceland? Spain have had a disjointed start to the tournament, from losing their coach, and drawing with Morocco in the group stages, if you would ever want to face Spain, now may be the perfect time.
A closer look at the team news...
For Spain, Andres Iniesta misses out on a starting spot, whilst Real Madrid's young talent Marco Asensio gets the nod to start down the left flank. They have also made two other changes as Dani Carvajal and Thiago Alcantara are replaced by Nacho and Koke.
For Russia, amongst four changes from their defeat to Uruguay the headlines are arguably their brightest star Denis Cheryshev does not start, and Igor Smolnikov is suspended after his red card in that match.
Fancy some pre-match reading? Here's an interesting piece from Miguel Delaney on Spain, from their make-fit manager, to the under pressure David De Gea...
Hosts, Russia, have impressed so far, but how crucial could the dropping of Denis Cheryshev be?
The Villareal star, has been the surprise package of the Russian side, scoring three crucial goals in convincing victories over Saudi Arabia and Egypt. But The Telegraph have reported Cheryshev has had to deny taking banned substances after his father, Dmitri Cheryshev suggested he had.
A catalogue of injuries meant the midfielder had not played for his country for almost two years when his father was quoted saying: “He received an injury and, because of the miscommunication of doctors, they began to inject him with growth hormone.”
Appearing to allege the procedure was carried out at Villarreal, he was said to have added: “It was done so that Denis recovered more quickly.”
No Iniesta no party? The midfielder is widely regarded as one of the best to ever play the game, but at the ripe old age of 34, and now playing for Vissel Kobe in Japan, he's in the closing chapter of his career.
The fans are ready...and the teams are in the tunnel, with less than 10 minutes until kick off
The anthems were well received, particularly the Russian one. It feels as though the whole nation is tuning into this one.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies