MOSCOW, July 8 (Sputnik) - Russia's quarter-final against Croatia was the side's best game at the tournament, Honorary President of the Russian Olympic Committee Alexander Zhukov told Sputnik on Saturday.
Hosts Russia were eliminated from the tournament, as Croatia beat them on penalties after the match finished 2-2 after extra time in Sochi on Saturday.
"Our guys were great, they played well, but a penalty shootout is a lottery, we can do nothing about this. The one team won, the other lost, it's football... Russia left the World Cup unbeaten, that says a lot. Today our team had their best game as of recently," Zhukov said.
The Honorary President added that Russia had chances to win.
"Russia have an absolutely efficient team, they proved it throughout the whole tournament. They gave all their strength to battle through. [Head coach] Stanislav Cherchesov proved himself, the players deserve praise," he said.
Russia achieved their best result in the country's history, since the break-up of the Soviet Union, at this summer's tournament upon reaching the quarter-finals.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicked off on June 14 and will continue until July 15, with the final set to be held at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.
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