It was the lowest-ranked team in the World Cup it was hosting, one given virtually no shot to get out of group play.
Yet Russia did just that, advancing to the final 16 of for the first time since it became an independent country.
It had no shot to win there, though, not against Spain, the 10th-best team in the world and the tournament champion in 2010.
Yet Russia did just that, with coach Stanislav Cherchesov devising a brilliant defensive game plan that took the match to penalty kicks, where his team won.
So when time and reality finally caught up with Russia in the quarterfinals Saturday in Sochi, the team’s elimination brought feelings of both sadness and joy. Sadness because losing to Croatia on penalty kicks after fighting for 120 minutes to a 2-2 draw means Russia’s World Cup is over.
But joy because the team’s run lasted far longer than anyone expected and created more memories than anyone had expected.
The Russian President Vladimir Putin watched Saturday’s game on TV, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, then called Cherchesov.
"He congratulated us on a very good game,” said the coach, who lost just one of his five games in the World Cup after losing nine of his first 20 with the national team. “He said what we showed on the field was great.”
