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That Roar You Hear Is From Russia. Its Team Sent Spain Home.

MOSCOW — We have a saying in Russia, Stanislav Cherchesov told reporters from behind his fearsome mustache Saturday afternoon.

The statement — made a day before Russia would play Spain in the World Cup’s round of 16 — was both pushback and premonition. Cherchesov knew what everyone was thinking: that his Russia team, the lowest-ranked in the field, had surpassed expectations as the host of the World Cup, but would surely reach the end of the line when it took on Spain, a former world and European champion.

But Cherchesov seemed to know better. He thought his team had more to give. And he was right.

In a stunning upset, Russia eliminated Spain on penalty kicks, 4-3, after a 1-1 tie Sunday that extended through 90 minutes of regulation and 30 minutes of extra time.

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The long day finally ended when the Russian goalkeeper, Igor Akinfeev, kicked away Iago Aspas’ fifth penalty attempt for Spain. The Russians had been dominated throughout the game, but a penalty kick by Artem Dzyuba before halftime allowed them to tie the score at 1-1, and a gritty, disciplined, defensive effort ultimately led to the penalty shootout — and to a result that many had considered unthinkable.

Cherchesov and Russia now have any number of players to toast as they begin to look ahead to their next game, on Saturday in Sochi, Russia, where they will play a quarterfinal match against Croatia, which won its own penalty-shootout battle Sunday against Denmark.

One hero, for sure, is Akinfeev, who saved two of Spain’s five penalties. Then there is Dzyuba, who created and then converted the penalty that drew Russia level in a game in which it appeared comically overmatched at times. And maybe Sergei Ignashevich, the 38-year-old center back, who was drafted into the World Cup squad late in Russia’s preparations. He has played every minute of this tournament, and he anchored the five-man defensive back line with the leadership and the direction to hold off Spain again and again.

“It’s an incredible feeling,” midfielder Alexander Golovin said. “To be honest, I do not even know what to do right now. We are in some kind of dream, a fairy tale.”

To say Russia played Spain to a draw was technically true. But in reality Spain played and Russia chased for most of the match inside the cavernous Luzhniki Stadium. Spain was content to keep possession of the ball after an early goal and Russia was, well, content to let Spain have it.

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For 10, 15, 20 passes at a stretch, Spain worked the ball around the field at will — a game of keepaway disguised as a World Cup elimination match. The pro-Russian crowd whistled its disapproval early and repeatedly, and urged its team on whenever it managed — even briefly — to steal the ball away from the Spaniards. But Spain, inevitably and repeatedly, simply took the ball back. And kept it.

“We knew that Spain would play the ball in the match and leave it to them: We were prepared for this,” Golovin said. “We knew that we would keep them as far away from the penalty area as possible.”

Spain was so dominant in the first half that it nearly made it to halftime with a 1-0 lead despite having taken no shots: its opening goal came off the right ankle of Ignashevich, who unwittingly scored this World Cup’s 10th own goal — a record total already — as he fell to the ground while tangling with Spain’s Sergio Ramos on a free kick in the 12th minute.

Staked to the early lead it sought, Spain continued to pass and Russia continued to chase. The game quickly devolved into a high-stakes training session.

And then, in the 40th minute, everything changed. Russia won a corner kick, Alexander Samedov fired it in and Dzyuba headed it directly onto the arm of Spain’s Gerard Piqué — who, for some reason, had jumped to challenge Dzyuba with his back turned and one arm over his head.

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The Dutch referee, Bjorn Kuipers, called a hand ball. Dzyuba buried the ensuing penalty kick past David De Gea and, just like that, Russia — and its crowd — came to life.

Russia had ridden that kind of full-throated support right through its first three games at the tournament. Its maximum-effort style on the field and early success — two victories in its first three games — had quickly got its countrymen on board, easing fears that the tournament might be an afterthought for the host country if the Russian team exited early.

Dzyuba’s goal seemed to revive those fans Sunday, and perhaps made them imagine a victory might just be possible. The start of the second half was more even, and the free kicks and corners Russia won — with increasing frequency — soon began to create two and three half-chances at a time before Spain would force the ball clear.

Spain still ruled the statistics — it completed 1,029 passes to Russia’s 202 by the end of the match — but it stubbornly refused to adjust its style even after it became clear Russia would not yield. The Spaniards had good chances — a long-range shot by Andrés Iniesta in the second half, a dangerous run by the substitute Rodrigo in the second extra period — but a goal never came.

The defeat will be a bitter one to swallow for Spain. The team had rallied after stunningly firing its coach, Julien Lopetegui, two days before its opening match here, and it had emerged from the group stage without a defeat and with a favorable path to the final. Fernando Hierro, the former Spanish national-team player who took over for Lopetegui, tried to shield his players from blame — “I can look them all in the eyes” — but could not hide his disappointment.

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“How do you think we are feeling?” Hierro said to a question about the team’s postgame mood. “We are feeling like all Spaniards are feeling this evening.”

Having reached the penalty-kick shootout, Russia seized its chance and finished the job. First Fyodor Smolov, then Ignashevich, then Golovin, then Denis Cheryshev — all beat De Gea.

Akinfeev did the rest, stopping Koke on Spain’s third attempt and Aspas on the fifth. Cherchesov, the coach, watched none of it, banking his emotions for what was to come. “I believe this is only the beginning,” he said, “so I have to save my emotions for the future.”

He did not join the celebrations as Akinfeev deflected the ball high into the air with his trailing foot to seal the victory. That was for the players, who dogpiled their goalkeeper as the crowd of 78,011 made a sound louder than any heard yet at this World Cup.

Those fans will get at least one more chance to cheer their heroes.

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

Andrew Das © 2018 The New York Times

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