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Russia 5 Saudi Arabia 0: Cheryshev, Golovin star in World Cup opener despite Dzagoev blow

Denis Cheryshev scored his first Russia goals as the World Cup hosts brushed Saudi Arabia aside at Luzhniki Stadium.

Denis Cheryshev scored a brace and Aleksandr Golovin starred as Russia kicked off their first home World Cup with a rampant 5-0 Group A win over a lacklustre Saudi Arabia side in Moscow.

Yuri Gazinskiy and Cheryshev struck first-half goals to open their international accounts at Luzhniki Stadium, Artem Dzyuba adding a third 89 seconds after his introduction as a second-half replacement, but an injury to star man Alan Dzagoev will cause concern for Russia.

Dzagoev hurt his hamstring in the opening period and could be a doubt for the rest of the tournament, depending on the results of a scan.