EURO '08: Russia downs the Dutch

• by Ridge Mahoney  @ridgemax, Jun 23, 2008

[RUSSIA-NETHERLANDS REPORT CARD] The Netherlands joined the group winners to go down in the quarterfinals after surrendering, 3-1, to overtime goals by Dimtri Torbinski and Andrei Arshavin after Ruud van Nistelrooy had nodded home a free kick to tie the match, 1-1, late in regulation.

Russia contained catalysts Wesley Sneijder and Rafael van der Vaart for most of the match and, led by Andrei Arshavin, repeatedly got in behind the Dutch back line. Roman Pavlyuchenko scored 11 minutes into the second half to give Russia the lead, and after the Netherlands fired a half-dozen desperation shots high or wide, van Nistelrooy reached Sneijder's free kick at the far post in the 86th minute.

Arshavin broke free on the left to loop a cross Torbinski touched home in the 112th minute from just yards out, and drove the third goal through var der Sar's ankles four minutes later. Soccer America's Ridge Mahoney grades the players.

Russia Player Ratings
GRADE PLAYER (CLUB) GP/G
6 Igor Akinfeyev (CSKA Moscow) 23/0
5 Alexander Anyukov (Zenit St. Petersburg) 33/1
6 Denis Kolodin (Dynamo Kiev) 16/0
6 Sergei Ignashevich (CSKA Moscow) 38/3
7 Yuri Zhirkov (CSKA Moscow) 20/0
7 Sergei Semak (Rubin Kazan) 50/4
6 Konstantin Zyryanov (Zenit St. Petersburg) 14/2
4 Igor Semshov (Dynamo Moscow) 88/0
5 Ivan Saenko (Nuremberg) 8/0
8 Andrei Arshavin (Zenit St. Petersburg) 34/13
7 Roman Pavlyuchenko (Spartak Moscow) 19/9
Subs:
4 Diniyar Bilyaletdinov (Lok. Moscow) 24/1
6 Dmitry Torbinsky (Lok. Moscow) 11/2
nr Dmitry Sychev (Lok. Moscow) 40/15

Netherlands Player Ratings
GRADE PLAYER (CLUB) GP/G
7 Edwin van der Sar (Man. United) 128/0
4 Andre Ooijer (Blackburn Rovers) 40/2
4 Khalid Boulahrouz (Sevilla) 26/0
3 Joris Mathijsen (Hamburg) 35/2
4 Giovanni van Bronckhorst (Feyenoord) 81/5
6 Nigel de Jong (Hamburg) 26/07
4 Orlando Engelaar (Twente) 10/0
4 Dirk Kuyt (Liverpool) 42/8
5 Rafael van der Vaart (Hamburg) 58/10
5 Wesley Sneijder (Real Madrid) 48/11
5 Ruud van Nistelrooy (Real Madrid) 64/33
Subs:
4 John Heitinga (Ajax) 39/5
3 Ibrahim Afellay (PSV) 8/0
5 Robin van Persie (Arsenal) 28/9