Forward Dzyuba Wants Russia to Face Portugal in Round of 16 at FIFA World Cup

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia forward Artem Dzyuba said on Friday that he would like his team to face Portugal in the round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup.
Sputnik

Russia has already qualified for the knockout stage and will play Portugal, Spain or Iran in the last 16 after taking on Uruguay in their last Group A game.

"We take it step by step. The head coach said that we must claim the first place in our group. Of course, we would like to face Portugal, not Spain, as the Portuguese rely on Cristiano Ronaldo's skills, and Spain are strong as a team, though both are out of this world," Dzyuba said.

READ MORE: Spanish Goalkeeper Casillas Wants Russia to Reach Later Stages at World Cup

The 29-year-old footballer went on saying that Russia had achieved their minimum goal by getting past the group stage.

"We ourselves don't know our maximum. As the tournament shows, all the teams are physically fit, all of them are fighting," he said.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicked off on June 14 and will continue until July 15, with the matches being played in 11 cities across Russia.

READ MORE: 'We Love Russia': Fans Thrilled About 2018 FIFA World Cup (VIDEO)

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