By Vivem Soriano
Eagle News Service
2010 winners Spain will battle host nation Russia tonight in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium at 10:00 PM (GMT+8) in what the Russians describe as the “match of our lives” as both teams try to advance in the quarterfinals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Spain topped Group B with 5 points. They opened the tournament with a 3-3 draw against Iberian rivals Portugal who was led by Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. La Roja next battled a tough Iran team and took a hard-earned 1-0 victory. The 2010 winners finished group play with another draw, a 2-2 affair against Morocco which Spain was losing until substitute Iago Aspas scored a late goal to secure the draw.
The Russians meanwhile posted impressive victories in Group A.
They trashed Saudi Arabia in an impressive 5-0 win during the tournament opener.
Russia next met Egypt and came away with a 3-1 win.
But the host nation finally met its match in Group A winners Uruguay which dealt them a 3-0 beatdown.
Croatia and Denmark meanwhile will battle at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in Nizhny Novgorod at 2:00 AM (GMT+8).
Croatia won all its matches to finish on top of Group D highlighted by the now famous 3-0 humiliation of Lionel Messi and South American powerhouse Argentina. The other wins are a 2-0 victory over Nigeria and a 2-1 win against Iceland.
Denmark qualified to the round-of-16 after finishing second behind Group C winners France.
Denmark’s lone win in group play was a 1-0 victory against Peru. A pair of draws, a 1-1 game against France and a goalless encounter against Australia were enough to push Denmark to the knockout stages.
