Substitute Cheryshev doubled Russia's lead

Yury Gazinsky scored the first goal of the 2018 World Cup in a dream start for the hosts at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.

However, shortly after they were dealt a blow when Alan Dzagoev pulled a hamstring in the 23rd minute, forcing Russia into an early substitution.

They brought on Cheryshev and what a great decision it would turn out to be as half-time approached.

The winger danced past two Saudi Arabia defenders with a nice bit of skill before smashing home a shot inside the near post to give Russia a 2-0 lead to take into the interval.

It will be a difficult scoreline to overturn for the Saudis going into the second half, especially considering their squad are still be observing Ramadan.