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2018 FIFA WORLD CUP IN RUSSIA

English team felt lack of officials’ presence during match against Croatia, diplomat says

According to Zakharova, around 10,000 people from Great Britain came to Russia for the World Cup "despite the anti-Russian propaganda"

MOSCOW, July 12. /TASS/. The English football team must have failed to win the 2018 FIFA World Cup semi-final match against Croatia because the players could feel the lack of the British officials’ presence at the stadium, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Thursday.

"They felt the lack of British officials’ presence at the stadium," she said. "That was their own choice, but at some moment they [the British authorities] should have made a responsible decision and stopped following the path of madness paved by the British politicians ahead of the World Cup," Zakharova pointed out.

Read also

Haunted by scandal, Croatia manages to head into FIFA World Cup final

"We regret that England has failed but this is sports. However, the team performed really well," the Russian diplomat said, adding that "we salute to British football fans."

According to her, around 10,000 people from Great Britain came to Russia for the World Cup "despite all the anti-Russian propaganda."

On Wednesday, Croatia defeated England 2-1 in a semi-final match and for the first time reached the World Cup final. England will now play against Belgium in the third-place match.

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2018 World Cup in Russia

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