Georgi Shchennikov? Vasili Berezutski? Watch England fans pronounce Russian footballers' names

On Saturday, England and Russia met in a Euro 2016 group stage clash, and while events on the field were rather overshadowed by violence before the match — 34 fans were left injured after rival spectators engaged in physical violence — there was the feel-good factor that could only be brought about by hundreds of thousands of British football fans, cheering drunkenly for their side.

But though the fans were unabashedly partisan with their support, refusing to even consider the possibility that their team might be in for an upset, it was more along the lines of blind love, not based on any deep understanding of the opposition team’s strengths and weaknesses. In fact, most fans didn’t even know the names of the top Russian players.

Asked to come on camera and pronounce the names of three Russian stars — Georgi Shchennikov, Vasili Berezutski, Roman Neustädter — most fans failed miserably. Their pampered British pronunciation never having trained them in the fine art of naming complicated Russian footballers, most fans gave up altogether and decided to just have some fun instead.

But after Berezutski broke English hearts with a last-gasp equaliser, we are betting most fans would certainly remember this particular Russian footballer’s name.

(Video courtesy - DPA Features)