Dzagoev says he is fit for Russia’s quarter-final against Croatia

On the other end of the draw are powerhouses Brazil, Uruguay, France and Belgium, teams that have combined for eight World Cup championships.

The quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2018 are scheduled to be played in Russian Federation on 6 and 7 June.

Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez give them serious firepower, but Cavani limped off with a calf injury after scoring twice to beat Portugal.

This French side that has forwards like Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud prides itself on attacking power while Uruguay are happy to have a stingy defence led by Diego Godin. “They have so many young players like Mbappé who are promising and are in good form now”.

“The match will be boring, they will want us to fall into their trap”.

“Emotions are simple. You show them when you direct the team”.

Neymar is very well-known for this type of play, and to be honest he does not need it.

Brazil versus Belgium is shaping up to be the game of the quarterfinals considering the depth and quality of both squads. So, they’re playing this World Cup as if they’re out there to prove their football legacy once again. They can’t afford any hiccups like that against the Brazilians, whose backline should make the difference in this game. The team stays compact and hard to break down, and for that reason, they have only allowed nine goals since their 2016 UEFA EURO match against the Czech Republic.

“This was special but I want us to go on”, said Southgate, whose own penalty miss saw England lose to Germany in the semi-finals of Euro 96 at Wembley.

Streetwise Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro being suspended for a World Cup quarter-final should be a cause of mild panic. His creativity will be key for the team and will also determine if the forward line has a saying in the outcome of the game.

“We have not got past the first knockout round since 2008 and It was very important for us to get past that”. Croatia still advanced to the quarterfinals, however, getting penalties from starters Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, as well as Andrej Kramaric, who came on in extra time as the third substitute.

It means that, unless the men’s final is drastically one-sided, there will be a clash with the World Cup.

“This [the win over Denmark] really was a similar game to that one in many aspects”.