The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicked off with an explosive start as Russia pulled off a dominating win over Saudi Arabia.
The Russian squad dazzled in front of a near 80,000 crowd with a 5-0 win to open the tournament.
Saudi Arabia began with a fast start, in an attempt to catch the host team flat-footed.
Scoring opened with Russia’s Yury Gazinsky, who received a cross from Aleksandr Golovin and headed home the first goal of the tournament.
Midfielder Alan Dzagoev was pulled early from the game due to injury and it was later confirmed that he will undergo an MRI scan on a potential hamstring injury.
Russia later doubled the lead as Denis Cheryshev potted the team’s second goal before the end of the first half.
In the second half, after several substitutions, Dzyuba entered the match and immediately made an impact, making it 3-0 on his first touch.
The game ended with just as much intensity as it began with, as Cheryshev buried a far strike and Golovin scored directly off a free kick. The final score reads 5-0 for Russia.
Cheryshev, with two goals, was named Man of the Match. Action continues tomorrow with three matches, perhaps the most prominent being Portugal taking on Spain later in the day.