Russia ready to roar

Brazil will look to start from where they had left off against Serbia when they take on a feisty Mexico in a World Cup round of 16 fixture at the Samara Arena today.

Fresh from their 2-0 win against Serbia, the five-time champions will also try to avoid being another heavyweight casualty from the biggest stage following the departures of holders Germany and Argentina.

They will be up against a team who were primarily responsible for Germany's exit from the group stages with a stunning 1-0 win. Mexico might have failed to carry on their brilliant start -- they suffered an embarrassing 3-0 defeat against Sweden in the last group game -- but they have shown the ability to get under the skin of big teams.

Brazil coach Tite said that they would start with the same side that won against Serbia. If that is the case then the return of leftback Marcelo to the starting lineup would be delayed. Marcelo, who suffered a back spasm against Costa Rica and was withdrawn in the tenth minute, however, trained with team at the match venue yesterday. A fifteen-minute window was open for journalists to watch the training session, where Tite was seen enjoying target practice -- he was kicking a ball in an attempt to hit another stationary one.

But emerging at the pre-match briefing he said that he was against starting with Marcelo in the stilling heat, where his side might have to play for 120 minutes. The mercury hit 34 degree celsius in Samara and it might soar to 36 on the match day, which will be really demanding for the players. Yesterday was probably the hottest day that we have come across in Russia. And the imposing iron structure gave the impression that a giant crab was moving through the desert in search of the precious drop of water to avoid cram from dehydration.

Tite, however, said that it was about time to step up against a team who have done exceedingly well against Brazil in the recent past. Although Brazil have never lost a World Cup game against Mexico, their last one was a disappointing goalless draw on home soil four years ago.

The Brazil coach also warned that records would not help his side if they could not show a more improved performance at a stage where they could ill-afford any mistake. The Selecao will once again look to Philippe Coutinho to dictate the midfield, Neymar to complete the recovery cycle and the defence manned by Thiago Silva, who attended the briefing too, to stay solid with Miranda against the sharp Mexican attack.

Mexico, who have already earned the nickname of giant-slayers, can enjoy another big sporting moment in their history if they can win.

Over the next month, Russia will serve up a football stroganoff spiced with enthralling matches, a dash of the world's finest players and the biggest prize in the sporting world -- the FIFA World Cup.

The biggest show in the world will kick off today and fans will dig into a buffet of perfectly-timed tackles, exquisite passes, nerve-wracking penalty shootouts and goals that will give birth to legends.

Unfortunately, only one nation will lift the prize while players from 31 other countries will be left to swallow the bitter pill of defeat.

The world is ready for the football feast to begin with state-of-the-art stadia and the World Cup will provide a window into the planet's largest country -- from the chilly climate at the Spartak Stadium in Moscow and the Fisht Stadium on the Russian Riviera in Sochi to the Saint Petersburg Stadium in the 'Window on the West'. Fans must traverse a continent to reach the Ekaterinburg Stadium in Asia and they must cross borders to reach the Kaliningrad Stadium in a Russian enclave separate from the rest of the country and squeezed snugly between Lithuania and Poland.

The event will also provide a welcome boost to the economic situation in the land of Tsars by reinvigorating stagnating sectors of the economy with an influx of foreign visitors and their spending. Although the analysts at Moody's believe the impact will be minimal, others opine that the improvements to infrastructure and investment in tourism could increase the economy's growth potential.

However, although Russia is eager to welcome some of the world's biggest names, there are burning questions in the back of every fan's mind.

Will football pay its dues to Lionel Messi and reward him with the trophy or will Cristiano Ronaldo pull off the miracle of all miracles and lift the cup with his unfavoured Portuguese side? Will it be Neymar who leads his Brazil to glory after their embarrassing exit in 2014 or will it be the star-studded French? Will the Germans retain? Will Spain, with a new head coach a day before the World Cup, be the big team to bite the dust early? Which unfancied underdog will make a deep run?

These issues and many more will be playing on the minds of supporters, but unfortunately there is no Paul the Octopus to provide us with spoilers. The answers will come with time and the ultimate question will be answered at the Luzhniki Stadium on July 15. All we can do till then is sit back and enjoy the ride.

Uruguay forward Edinson Cavani scored twice to earn the South Americans a 2-1 win over European champions Portugal in their World Cup round of 16 clash on Saturday and set up a quarter-final against France.

Cavani put Uruguay ahead in the seventh minute when he evaded the Portugal defence to meet Luis Suarez's pinpoint cross with a bullet header at the far post.

Pepe headed Portugal level in the 55th minute, the first goal Uruguay have conceded in the tournament, but Uruguay regained the lead seven minutes later when Rodrigo Bentancur found Cavani and he curled a brilliant first-time shot past Rui Patricio from the edge of the penalty area.

Portugal dominated possession but their attack did not have enough bite to break through the Uruguay defence twice, leaving their captain Cristiano Ronaldo a frustrated figure throughout the match.

The Real Madrid forward could not add to his four goals in the first two matches, failing to improve his record of failing to score in all six World Cup knockout matches he has played.

Ronaldo had an opportunity around the half-hour mark to score from a free kick 30 metres out but could only hit the wall.

It has been like rainbow after rain in Moscow for the last couple of days as fans from across the world have thronged the Russian capital and other cities in their thousands ahead of the World Cup, which kicks off at the Luzhniki Stadium today.

The iconic Bolshio Theatre square, Karl Marx square and the opposite end of Red Square in the city centre are the popular destinations for the travelling fans, who are painted in different colours on the streets of Moscow, turning it into a truly global centre of sporting festivity.

Argentina fans, draped in their famous white and sky-blue shirt, appeared at the Bolshoi square with a banner of their superstar Leonel Messi. The five fans from the city of Salta were singing a song and looked very confident about winning the title in Russia.

Not far away from them, four Brazilian fans, attired in yellow, were enjoying their time with a young Russian playing a guitar to a samba tune. The Brazilians showed six fingers while uttering hexa, which means they were confident that the Selecao would win the World Cup for a record sixth time. They were, however, reluctant to talk about the disappointment from four years ago and when asked if they had watched that fateful 7-1 defeat against Germany, they said in unison: “No, can't remember anything about that game”. 

Mexican's are famous for sombreros. But a young group of five preferred to carry Mexican wrestling mask. When asked which team they would follow after the probable early departureof their team, one of them protested vehemently: “We will win the World Cup in Russia. We love [Coach Hector] Hereera.”

As one crosses the road and walks past the Karl Marx square, he will be attracted by the electrifying presence of three young Egyptian fans, draped in their red and white flag and the image of Mohammad Salah in their T-shirt. They were singing a song, which in a nutshell, means 'Mo Salah is the Pharaoh of Egypt'. There were two Moroccan fans in the mix and they warned that their country would spring a surprise in Russia.

A French couple, wearing dresses matching their national flag, felt that the present team blended youth and experience well and have the ability to win the World Cup. Fans of Peru appeared more imposing in the mixed zone until the Iranians outnumbered them. The army of green and white paraded in a way as if they had won the World Cup. They were so big in size that they partially blocked the main road. The atmosphere was vibrant and consuming. It was really a sight to behold. Football is not only a beautiful game but also the most entertaining one, on the field and off it.

Croatia set up a dream final with France as they came from a goal down to beat England 2-1 in a nail-biting semifinal at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow yesterday.

Mario Mandzukic struck the winner in the 109th minute after the game headed into extra time following a 1-1 stalemate in regulation 90 minutes. England defender Kieran Trippier gave the Three Lions a fifth-minute lead with a spectacular free-kick before Ivan Perisic levelled the margin in the 68th minute with a first-time flick into the left-hand corner of the net.

And the moment Turkish referee Cuneyt Cakir blew the final whistle after four minutes of added time, the Croatian players burst into wild celebration for having made it into the final for the first time in their history, leaving England to eat the humble pie 28 years after that gut-wrenching defeat against Germany in Italia '90. 

Despite the defeat, this young England team showed they can play entertaining, fearless and not conventional football. Raheem Sterling, Dele Alli, Jasse Lingard, John Stones and goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, whose brilliance under the bar ended the Three Lions' shootout jinx in the round or 16 against Colombia, were really pushing a seasoned Croatian side into tight corners.

And England needed only five minutes to take the lead through a magnificent free-kick from Trippier, who whipped the ball over the wall and into the top right-hand corner that Croatia goalkeeper Danijel Subasic could only watch. England got the free-kick just outside the box when Luka Modric pulled Alli, who looked ominously poised after being nicely fed by Lingard. It was the Tottenham Hotspur winger's first goal on England shirt.

The early goal fuelled more energy into the England attack, with Sterling making those sprints down the right flank. They won a corner in the 14th minute and it was time for another defender to bury it for a team that had proved to be the most successful side from dead-ball situations in this World Cup. But Harry Maguire headed the ball wide off the mark.

The pace of England attack created all sorts of problems for Croatia's defence and a terrible mispass from Domagoj Vida, who was jeered by his the fans whenever he touched the ball, almost allowed Sterling to score another. But the Manchester City forward killed that opportunity by trying to feed it to Harry Kane, who was offside.

Kane, the Tottenham Hotspur forward and the leading scorer in the World Cup with six goals, had his share of chances in the 30th minute. But his shots were amazingly saved by Subasic. After being nicely set up by Lingard, Kane drove a low sided-footed shot that Subasic partially parried and Kane's second attempt off the rebound from a tight angle hit the post before the ball somehow bounced away after hitting the goalkeeper.

Having survived the early onslaught, Modric finally showed up in the final third as he sent through an overlapping Rebic, who sent a rising shot towards the top left post. But that only allowed Pickford to warm his hands for the first time in the evening.

But the post-lemon session offered a completely different picture, with the Croats coming firing in all cylinders. And it turned into anybody's game after Perisic restored parity in the 68th minute.

It was a reward for constant pressure. Vrsaljko curled in the ball towards the far post that Perisic buried with a first-time flick. Four minutes later, Perisic almost got his second goal but his low shot past Pickford came off the far post. Rebic's shot on the rebound came straight at the young England goalkeeper.

England got a golden opportunity to take the decisive lead in the ninth minute of extra time, but Stone's goal bound header was cleared off the line by Vrsalijko. Few minutes later Pickford made an equally brilliant save at the other end off a Mandzukic shot on a Perisic cross from the right.

But the experienced Juventus striker made no mistake to pounce on a loose ball three minutes into the second half of extra-time. After England failed to clear a high ball down the left, Perisic beat Trippier to a header to the left of the box. Mandzukic was first to get the dropping ball and fired an unstoppable left-footer into the bottom right. And that meant dreamland for Croatia.