After Russia topped Spain in penalty kicks, the World Cup host nation's supporters hope there's at least one more encore performance in the wings.
Russia takes on Croatia in Sochi on Saturday, with the prize being a ticket to the semifinals. Not much was expected of Russia, the lowest-seeded team in the World Cup field, but it wound up winning its first two matches and finishing second in its group. That resulted in a showdown with Spain, and while the favorites outpossessed the hosts by a wide margin, they couldn't find the breakthrough necessary before succumbing in penalty kicks.