Confederations Cup: Russia waltz to victory in opener
June 17, 2017
A goal in each half ensured Russia won the opening game of the Confederations Cup against New Zealand in St Petersburg. But FIFA will face questions about the vast number of empty seats at the Krestovsky stadium.
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Russia 2-0 New Zealand
(Boxall og, 32', Smolov 69')
Hosts Russia got their Confederations Cup campaign off to the perfect start, easing to victory against a toothless New Zealand in St Petersburg.
Russian president Vladimir Putin officially got the tournament underway by addressing the crowd at the Krestovsky stadium, but it was far from a full house with a spattering of blue seats visible which will continue to raise questions about whether Russia is a suitable host for the tournament, and indeed the World Cup in a year's time.
The game itself was an open contest with plenty of chances, most of which fell to Russia – clearly the better side throughout. The first warning sign for New Zealand came in the seventh minute when Michael McGlinchley was forced to hack off the line after Viktor Vasin's header came back off the inside of the post.
It wasn't long before Russia had the lead, and it came courtesy of an own goal by Michael Boxall. The New Zealand defender threw himself at the ball in a desperate attempt to to deny Denis Glushakov's effort, but the All Whites player ended up in the goal with the ball, with Glushakov reeling off to celebrate with his teammates.
Russia always looked the more likely to add to their lead and New Zealand had their goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic to thank for a crucial double save before the break – first denying Dmitry Poloz's header and then Aleksandr Erokhin on the follow-up.
New Zealand survived until halftime without suffering further damage but Marinovic was called into action again soon after the break, keeping out another good effort by Poloz.
But New Zealand's resistence was eventually broken 20 minutes from the end, when Fedor Smolov tapped in Alexander Samedov's low cross from the right to put the result beyond doubt and give Russia an ideal start to the tournament.
New Zealand's best chance felt to Tommy Smith, whose header was cleared off the line by Yury Zhirkov but by then the damage was already done, and the All Whites will need to dramatically improve when they face Mexico in their next game, on Wednesday.
Confederations Cup: Cities and venues
The continental football champions will play for the Confederations Cup in Russia starting on June 17. The World Cup dress rehearsal will take place in four cities - St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan and Sochi.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/A. Lebevev/AP
St. Petersburg
"The most beautiful city on the face of the earth." That is how Nobel Prize winning poet Joseph Brodsky described the north western city of St. Petersburg. The city, located on the Newa sea, is actually more than admirable and worth seeing. The notorious Czar Peter the Great founded it in the 18th century as the "Gateway to the West," quickly building palaces and castles in just a few years.
Image: Picture alliance/GES-Sportfoto/M. Gillia
Krestovsky Stadium
This is where the German national team wants to end up because the brand new Krestovsky stadium is where the Confed Cup final will take place on July 2. The stadium holds 68,000 spectators and is the new home of local club Zenit St. Petersburg.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/D. Lovetsky/AP
Moscow
Moscow is the city of superlatives: With 10.4 million inhabitants, it is the largest capital city in Europe. It is laced with landmarks, which includes Moscows most notworthy structure: the Kremlin. This is where Vladimir Putin governs. There are over 600 cities within the city, which earned Moscow the name the "Third Rome".
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/S. Stache
Otkrytije Arena
Three games will be played at the Otrkrytije Arena in Mosco for the Confed Cup. The arena was reopened in 2014 and is the home of local side Spartak Moscow. One of the most well known clubs in Russia, Spartak had to wait many years for their own stadium.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/S. Suki/EPA
Kazan
Many different cultures and religions coexist feely in the capital of the Russian republic of Tatarstan. Mosques of the Tatar muslims stand next to the Orthodox churches of the Christian Slavs. Two-time Russian league champions Rubin Kazan are the sport's figureheads in the Volga city.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/M. Bogodvid/Sputnik
Kazan Arena
On June 22, 2017, this is where Germany will play against Chile in their second group stage game. The capacity of the stadium is about 45,000 people. The Kazan Arena will also be one of the stadiums used for the semifinals. Vladimir Putin, the prime minister of Russia at the time, laid the cornerstone for the stadium before it opened in 2013. It is the home ground of Rubin Kazan.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/N. Alexandrov/AP
Sochi
The resort town with a subtropical climate became known worldwide thanks to the Winter Olympics in 2014. Critics at the time bemoaned the high cost of the Games. Formula One also runs races in this tourist city on the Black Sea. Four million people visit the city annually - even the Russian president vacations here.
Image: Picture alliance/dpa/N. Zotina/Sputnik
Fisht Olympic Stadium
The first game for the German national team against Australia takes place in the Fisht Olympic Stadium on June 19. The Germans will also play Cameroon in this venue on June 25. FIFA regulations require World Cup stadiums to have open roofs, so construction needed to be done to remove a big piece of the roof.