Euro 2020: Finnish Spirit Bubbling, Russia Is Full Of Anger

JAKARTA - There is a different mood from the two camps that will be opposite each other when Finland travels to St Petersburg to challenge Russia in the second match of Group B Euro 2020.

Finland, who are debutants at the Euro finals, are in full swing to keep on creating surprises after Joel Pohjanpalo's header earned them a win over Denmark.

Their confidence also increased after goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky proved so reliable that he could save a Danish penalty in a game that shocked many after Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsed with a heart attack.

On the other hand, Russia may come angry and hurt so that they are eager to win as they were thrashed by Belgium 0-3 in their first game.

Following the defeat to Belgium, Russia was strongly criticized at home. But the manager Stanislav Cherchesov took the criticism for granted and said it had prompted his squad to rise to prominence.

He made sure his team was ready to beat Finland because it would be very big if Russia lost, even a draw.

"The criticism is well deserved", Cherchesov told reporters. "But we've recovered from that first game. Now we have a completely different preparation".

There was a reassuring tone from Cherchesov. Not only because they will appear again in front of their own supporters, but also the fact Finland is not as terrible as Belgium. Even so, Russia can boast of their previous meeting record with Finland.

The last time they met, Russia won 3-0 in a 2010 World Cup qualifier. Although they had never won in the previous six Euro finals, Russia had only lost once in 18 meetings with Finland, and that was a long time ago at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics.

Finland themselves do not want to be satisfied just because they have beaten Denmark. They remained cautious and had expected Russia to be fierce from the first minute so they knew for sure that their defense team would remain as busy as against Denmark as Russia tried to vent their anger at being beaten 3-0 by Belgium at home.

“Keeping their players on the ball when they have the ball is key, and defending against free-kicks and corners is also the key. Their midfielder is very dynamic", said Finland coach Markku Kanerva.

However, Kanerva admitted that he still could not guess what strategy their opponent would apply later. What he did was encourage his players to have a more positive mindset in facing Russia later. In the estimation of Kanerva and the Finland squad, Russia will appear pressing since the referee whistled to signal the start of the match.

Even though they were ready to face the terror of Russia, there was a tone of optimism from Finland that they would enter the knockout phase, directly at their first opportunity in the Euro finals. A draw can also make them half hold on to the knockout phase tickets.

And Kanerva isn't shy about admitting that, "if we had drawn that game then we might have been satisfied".

A draw and if Denmark is defeated by world number one Belgium, it will open up a great opportunity for Finland to qualify from the group stage, at least as a candidate for one of the best three places.

The Statistics

This is the fifth meeting between Finland and Russia where the previous four meetings have always been won by Russia. Finland can only enter one goal, on the other hand, Russia has 15 times scored against Finland.

Finland has only won once in its last seven matches of which four have been defeats. But that victory came in his first Euro finals match against Denmark then.

Russia is almost equal to Finland, winning only three of its last 12 matches. Russia is also winless in the six Euro finals. The last time they won was against the Czech Republic at Euro 2012.