Russia confirmed their safe passage into Euro 2016 in France next year by beating Montenegro 2-0 at the Otkrytie Arena in Group G this evening.
Leonid Viktorovich Slutsky's men sought to put some pressure on debutant Montenegro keeper Milan Mijatovic early on, but the youngster proved equal to the hosts' opening efforts.
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The visitors were under pressure for much of the first half, but they were tight at the back as Russia were left pondering how to find the opening goal after a tough 30 minutes in Moscow.
Russia were able to eventually find the breakthrough just a few minutes later, however, as defender Oleg Kuzmin got his toe on the end of a cross from Igor Denisov to push the home side in front.
Things soon became even better for the Russians when Vladimir Rodic brought Dmitri Kombarov down inside the area, leaving Aleksandr Kokorin to slot a penalty past Mijatovic to make it 2-0 after 37 minutes.
The hosts might have added a third goal before the final whistle, but Mijatovic continued to make a lasting impression for the away side as he pulled off a good stop to deny the experienced Roman Shirokov late on.
