The Russian team had begun the tournament impressively with a 7-1 win over Slovakia and they were handed an early boost in their second Group C match against Croatia in Amsterdam.

Croatia’s Vedran Matošević was sent off in the second minute of the match at the Ziggo Dome, which saw them reduced to four players for two minutes or until Russia scored.

The Russian team took advantage of having an extra player, with Artem Antoshkin scoring from distance in the third minute.

Paulinho doubled Russia’s advantage with a powerful effort after 11 minutes, before Ivan Chishkala scored early in the second half with a chipped finish.

Antoshkin became the tournament’s joint top scorer with his second goal of the match, having also scored a hat-trick in Russia’s opening game.

The effort sealed a 4-0 victory for Russia, taking them to the top of the Group C standings and tournament top scorer charts.

The result moved Russia onto six points, with Croatia holding the second qualification spot on three.

Russia were assured of advancing from the group after Poland and Slovakia drew in the second match of the day.

Both teams had been hoping to bounce back from their opening day defeats.

Poland took a seventh minute lead with a powerful effort from Tomasz Kriezel, which proved the only goal of the first half.

Slovakia turned the match around with goals from Matus Sevcik and Tomas Drahovsky in the 25^th and 28^th minutes.

The goals put Poland on the brink of elimination from the tournament, until Patryk Holy scored an equaliser after a spell of pressure in the 32^nd minute.

Neither side were able to score a winner in the closing minutes, with both sides left to settle for a 2-2 draw.

Both teams will require a win in their final group matches to stand a chance of reaching the knock-out stage.

Competition will continue tomorrow in Groningen, where Georgia and Spain will seek their second victories in Group D.

Georgia are set to face Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Spain will play Azerbaijan.