NIZHNY NOVGOROD, July 2. /TASS/. Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic finds Russia a worthy opponent for her country’s national team in the 2018 FIFA World Cup quarterfinal, she informed journalists on Monday in Nizhny Novgorod.

On Sunday, the Russian national football team advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup after defeating Spain with 3-4 penalties' win following 1-1 draw in the main time. Russia will face Croatia, who prevailed over Denmark with 3-2 penalties win. The match will take place on July 7 in Sochi at 21:00 Moscow time.

"I would like to congratulate the Russian team, who also got through to the quarterfinal after a penalty shoot-out. I was watching the game from the Nizhny Novgorod fan zone. I think that our teams deserve to meet each other," Grabar-Kitarovic said.

"I’m proud of the Croatian team, it was a difficult game. The team was under great pressure, but we supported it, and everything turned out successful," the president concluded.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will take place at 12 stadiums in 11 Russian cities - Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara - from June 14 until July 15.