Full Time: That's it from our live coverage! Hopefully you have enjoyed our live inline commentary of the Russia - Morocco match. Make sure to follow VAVEL to have the best live events prior to the 2014 World Cup!
Full Time Comment: Russia improved drastically in the second half and they come away with a solid win against a lowly Morocco side. Fabio Capello's squad was average in the first half but managed to score thanks to Valeriy Berezutski, although they improved a lot in the final 45 minutes. Yuri Zhirkov scored the second goal, the team had plenty of chances and they looked dominant in their final friendly match ahead of their 2014 World Cup debut against South Korea. A good performance from Russia in front of their fans!
90+3' The game is over and Russia wins with a 2-0 score!!
90+1' Substitution in Morocco: Moutouali replaces El-Kaddouri.
90' Two minutes have been added of stoppage time.
89' Mehdi Carcela wastes another chance! The playmaker finds himself inside the box but his shot is too soft and Lodygin saves it with ease.
87' Russia are moving the ball around with ease in midfield and they are controlling the action in the final minutes. They have been dominant in the second half and that alone should be enough to give them this advantage in the score.
85' Here is a video with Yuri Zhirkov's amazing second goal in this match.
83' Belhanda makes an instant impact! The playmaker moves forward and creates a scoring chances, but misses on the final touch and Russia will resume the game with a goal kick.
82' Substitution in Morocco: Younes Belhanda replaces Mbark Boussoufa.
81' Kerzhakov misses a very good chance!!! The striker had open space to blast a shot but mishit the ball in what was a clear chance for Russia.
79' Russia puts another ball into the box! However, the low cross is easily cleared by De Costa. The defender has been Morocco's most valuable piece on defense today.
78' What a save from Lodygin!!! El-Arabi blasts a shot from outside the box but Lodygin makes a stretched save to clear the danger!!
76' Morocco also makes a substitution as El-Arabi replaces Hamdallah.
76' Substitution in Russia: Aleksei Kozlov replaces Dmitri Kombarov, who couldn't recover from the previous injury.
73' El Kaddouri with a cross and Carcela blasts a shot!! However, his effort from inside the box goes well wide and Russia will resume from their own defensive end.
72' Kombarov returns to the pitch and both sides have 11 players on the pitch at the moment.
71' Kombarov is slowly getting recovered and it seems like he might continue. He's taken off the pitch though and his status remains uncertain.
70' Kombarov is down on the pitch and he appears to be quite injured. The medical staff rushes on to the field to give him a look but he might have to end up being substituted.
69' Kombarov's cross is deflected and Russia will have another corner kick, this time from the left flank, but is cleared away with ease by Morocco's defensive line.
68' Dangerous play called against Morocco. Russia has a dangerous costless kick near the box.
66' Morocco has struggled mightily in this second half. They haven't been able to move forward like they did in the first half and they need some kind of spark if they want to create danger near Russia's goal.
64' Second substitution in Morocco: Erraki replaces El Adoua.
63' Zhirkov shoots but the ball goes wide!! The left winger tries another volley - this time from inside the box on a tight angle - and his effort goes wide.
62' Substitution in Morocco: Chahechouhe is replaced by Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez
61' Another corner kick for Russia. Their two goals today have been started with costless kicks. However, nothing comes out of it this time.
60' A good pass finds Kerzhakov but the striker was called offside just by inches!
58' What a goal by Zhirkov!! After a swinging corner that is cleared by Morocco's defensive line, Zhirkov blasts a one-timer volley that goes straight on to the top left corner! Beautiful blast by the former Chelsea player!
58' Yuri Zhirkov scores Russia's second goal!!!
57' Another substitution for Russia: Aleksandr Kerzhakov replaces Aleksandr Kokorin.
55' Russia changed its tactic and now they're using a 4-1-4-1 system that has them dominating the game in the first minutes of the second half.
52' Kokorin wastes another opportunity!! A good cross from the right flank finds Kokorin inside the box but his header goes high and wide when he could've done something better.
51' Kokorin has another chance!!! The striker receives a good through ball but the Morocco keeper saves it before the forward could try a shot.
50' Russia looks much more aggresive in this second half so far. It seems like the lead and the substitutions helped them to be a more offensive squad.
48' Lodygin makes a good stop and the game continues to have a 1-0 lead for Russia.
48' Morocco will have a dangerous costless kick near the edge of the box.
46' Russia has made four substitutions. Alan Dzagoev, Yuri Lodygin, Dmitri Kombarov and Vladimir Granat will enter the game in this second half. The ones that were replaced were Faizulin, Akinfeev, Ignashevich and Schennikov.
46' The ball rolls on and the second half starts!
Half Time: It seems like both sides are set to make substitutions.
Half Time: We are only minutes away from the start of the second half.
Half Time: This is Valery Berezutski's goal that has Russia leading at the break.
Half Time Comment: While it's true that Russia has the lead with a 1-0 score, Fabio Capello's men haven't had an inspiring performance. They have controlled the game and have been effective on their passing in midfield, but have lacked that same accuracy when going forward. Russia are on the driver seat, but this same kind of performance could create them several problems against tougher teams like South Korea or Belgium in the 2014 World Cup.
45+1' The first half ends with no stoppage time. Russia has a 1-0 lead after the first 45 minutes!
45' Zhirkov with a shot from the edfe of the box!! The winger fails to hit it properly and the ball sails over the bar.
45' Zhirkov and Fayzulin create a good chance on the left flank, but there's no cross and Russia decided to move the ball around.
42' Samedov puts a good ball into the box but it goes wide - on the counter, Morocco attacks but Russia's defensive line does a good job to clear the danger away with a strong tackle.
41' Zhirkov puts a strong cross into the box and there's another scramble near the goal, but Morocco clears the danger away.
39' While it's true that Russia has had a solid control of the action thus far, it has been a dominant performance from the European side. They've been inaccurate with their passing and haven't been as attacking as they could. This kind of play might not take them too far in the 2014 World Cup.
37' Samedov tries to put another run into the attack but as it has been the case so far, the final pass wasn't very accurate. Morocco resumes the game with a goal kick.
35' Kokorin makes a hard foul in midfield and he should've been booked. The referee, however, decides to only call the foul. No yellow cards have been shown yet as the first half hit the 35th minute mark.
33' Zhirkov tries to put another cross into the box but Morocco's defensive line clears with ease. A pitiful performance from Zhirkov so far as he has been quite inaccurate with his passing.
31' Russia has settled after scoring the opener and now they are controlling the midfield, just like they did in the first half. Morocco, however, are trying to move the ball into attacking territory as they have already shown they have a lot of talent to do so.
29' After a scramble in the corner kick, Valeriy Berezutski takes advantage of a rebound to put the ball into the net. Russia has a one-goal lead!
29' Russia scores the first goal of the game!!!
28' Another effort from Kokorin but it's deflected. Russia has a corner kick.
26' Aleksandr Kokorin fails to reach a good cross inside the six-yard box!!! Zhirkov puts the ball into the box but a last-second tackle from a defender stops Russia from scoring the first goal of the match!
25' Morocco are slowly generating chances and now they've been putting the ball consistently on to the box. Russia looks lost so far and this performance shouldn't have manager Fabio Capello very pleased.
24' Morocco hits the woodwork!!! A good play for Boussoufa, the ball goes into the box and El Kaddouri shoots from inside the box, but his finesse effort hits the post when Akinfeev was already beaten!!
22' Zhirkov fails to control a good pass on the left flank and Morocco recovers on the defensive end. That has been Russia's biggest problem so far: the inability to put the ball consistently on the attack.
21' Boussoufa puts up a lobbed pass into the box but no one can reach for it. Akinfeev will resume the action with a goal kick for Russia.
19' Russia looks tangled in midfield. Aside of Samedov, no player has been able to create anything on the attack and that has left Kokorin all alone on the attack against a strong defensive line of Morocco.
18' To say that Russia has controlled the possession is no fluke, as the World Cup-bound side has had an 58% of possession thus far.
16' It's early, but Morocco could definitively use some help upfront and they have some good options on the bench. Most notably they have Standard Liege's Carcela Gonzalez and Granada's El-Arabi.
14' The game has been quite slow thus far as neither side seems eager to put the ball into the opposing side's box. Russia's attacking midfield has been taking control of the match so far but they have lacked accuracy on the final meters while Morocco seems unable to do anything going forward.
12' Nothing comes off the costless kick and Morocco recovers the ball. They will try to make their first approach towards Akinfeev's goal.
11' Huge foul of El Addoua over Yuri Zhirkov. There's no yellow card though and the former Chelsea winger slowly recovers after the hard foul.
9' The game continues its trend with Russia attacking through the right flank and Morocco doing what they can on the defensive side of the ball.
7' Nothing comes off the corner but Russia continues to put pressure on the attack. They've been moving the ball through the right flank where Samedov has been a key player thus far.
6' Shatov and Samedov create another chance and Russia has a corner kick.
5' Samedov puts a low cross on the right! Aleksandr Kokorin can't reach for it though and Morocco's keeper saves it with ease.
4' Marocco has already switched their tactic and will use the same as Russia: a line with four defenders, five midfielders and only one player upfront.
2' Russia are trying to control the game through the flanks but haven't been able to do so thus far.
1' The game starts and we go underway with this exciting match!
15.00 Teams already on the pitch and we're in time for the National Anthems.
14.58 Russia will use their dark red uniform while Morocco will wear their traditional white and green kit.
14.57 Morocco's substitutes: Zniti, Askri, El Kaoutari, El Khaliqi, Aberhoune, Oulhaj, Erraki, Ait-Ben-Idir, Berrabah, Carcela, Moutouali, Belhanda, El-Arabi
14.56 Morocco has also announced its lineup and they will employ a 5-4-1 system: Fegrouche; Lazzar, El Adoua, Manuel da Costa, El Hachimi, Feddal; Chahechouhe, Boussoufa, Obbadi, El Kaddouri; Hamdallah
14.53 Russia Substitutes: Ryzhikov, Lodygin, Kozlov, Semenov, Granat, Dzagoev, Ionov, Kombarov, Denisov, Kerzhakov, Kanunnikov
14.50 Russia has officially announced its starting lineup: Akinfeev; Eshchenko, Schennikov, Ignashevich, Berezutski; Samedov, Glushakov, Shatov, Faizulin, Shirkov; Kokorin
14.45 The stadium is slowly starting to fill out for this Russia - Morocco match and we are getting closer to kick-off time for what should be an amazing encounter!!
14.40 Morocco Probable Starting XI: Zniti; El Adoua, Benatia, El Kaoutari, Bergdich; Boussoufa, Belhanda, Obbadi, Carcela-Gonzalez; Chamakh, El-Arabi
14.35 Russia Probable Starting XI: Akinfeev; Ignashevich, Berezutski, Kombarov, Semyonov; Denisov, Shirokov; Kokorin, Dzagoev, Zhirkov; Kerzhakov.
14.30 On the other hand, Morocco’s manager Badou Ezzaki has no pressure to get the win as his mindset is already placed for the future. With that in mind, the African side could see some youngster taking on the pitch and if that’s the case, Russia could have a field day against what it could be a very inexperienced side.
14.25 When it comes to Russia, it wouldn’t be strange to see Fabio Capello testing different tactics on today’s encounter. Aside from a few players – Akinfeev, Shirokov, Dzagoev and Kerzhakov – that have their place in the lineup secured, the rest can be considered an enigma. This will be Capello’s final chance to set up the starting XI ahead of the debut against South Korea on June 17th..
14.15 Morocco, on the other hand, doesn’t have a very strong lineup but they have to be encouraged by some of the performances they received in the past season, Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez was dominant for Standard Liege, Youssef El-Arabi scored plenty of goals for Granada and Marrouane Chamakh can be a threat when given enough space.
14.13 This is Lokomotiv Stadium, the venue where the game will be played.
14.10 There is something very particular with the roster that Fabio Capello assembled for the 2014 World Cup, as the 23 players are participants of the Russian League. Not a single player that features on the exterior made the cut and that included Reading striker Pavel Pogrebnyak and Sevilla midfielder Denys Cherishev.
14.05 Manager Fabio Capello already announced the 23-man roster that will feature in the 2014 World Cup and there’s plenty of young talent mixed with some steady veterans that should provide leadership. Players like Alan Dzagoev, Igor Akinfeev and Aleksandr Kokorin provide youth and experience at the highest level while veterans Roman Shirokov, Aleksandr Kerzhakov and Sergei Ignashevich should give the side leadership at key positions.
14.03 Russia will play their final game prior to the 2014 World Cup and it would be a good strategy for Fabio Capello to test the fitness and new tactics on the verge of their participation in Brazil.
13.58 These are the highlights of Russia’s 1-1 draw against the Nordic side.
13.55 Russia, on the other hand, are getting into the final stage of their 2014 World Cup preparation. They have three wins in the last four contests – against South Korea, Armenia and Slovakia – but their last encounter was a draw against Norway.
13.50 Here’s a video with all the highlights of the Morocco - Angola match.
13.48 Morocco are coming off a 2-0 friendly loss against Angola and prior to that they defeated Mozambique by a 4-0 score. Morocco only has two wins in their last six matches but they have plenty of speed and talent to put a good challenge against the Russian side.
13.45 As for Morocco, they didn’t fare very well on the African Qualifiers and won’t be taking part of the upcoming 2014 World Cup, a tournament they haven’t qualified since the 1998 edition. Morocco was eliminated in the second round of the CAF Qualifiers, finishing second in Group C behind Ivory Coast with nine points in six matches.
13.40 The World Cup draw was quite keen with Russia as they should be able to advance into the second round. Belgium is a tough rival but they should be able to handle both South Korea and Algeria to make it into the Round of 16.
13.35 Russia clinched their World Cup berth after winning their UEFA Qualifying Group against Portugal and Israel, two teams that couldn’t match up with the Russian side. Fabio Capello has done a marvelous job with a solid crop of players and the team has seen a notable rise in their performances since his arrival.
13.30 Good afternoon and welcome to the live commentary of this 2014 World Cup friendly match Russia - Morocco! We will be providing live updates and results of this exciting game that features a World Cup-bound team in Russia and another one who is looking towards the future in Morocco in a thrilling friendly contest!