Watch out Europe... Hero Hiddink's Russian revolution has only just begun

Victory over Sweden last night provided a path to the quarter-finals, adding another achievement to Hiddink's CV after he previously defied the odds with South Korea and Australia.  

Russian daily newspapers hailed their coach, with one declaring: 'Thank you, Guus!'

Dutch delight: Hiddink became the first coach since Valeri Lobanovsky to take Russia (then the USSR) into the last eight of a major competition

Since competing as Russia in the last 16 years following the break-up of the Soviet Union, Euro 2008 is the first time they have made it out of the group stages of a major tournament.  

Whether they win or lose on Saturday against Hiddink's native Holland, who he managed in the 1990s, the tournament has been deemed a success - but it is also seen as just the start of things to come. 

Hiddink said: 'If you see where Russia have come from then this is already a success. We are coming up. It's already a big success.  

'The biggest success for Russia would be if we use this momentum to improve the national infrastructure, giving our young players a chance, educating them in a new, modern way.

'Then this big country, not now but the day after tomorrow, becomes one of the leading teams in Europe. Responsible people, wherever they are, must provide the next step in the development of young players. Success for the A team means we can relax.'

Russian players have benefited from Hiddink's confrontational style, challenging and demanding high standards from them. 

While Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andrei Arshavin took England apart in qualifying, they have not been allowed a moment to rest on their laurels in the build-up to the finals.   Pavlyuchenko was ordered to lose weight, which he did.  

Arshavin was not guaranteed a starting place for his return from suspension, earned for a needless red card in the final qualifier. Hiddink did pick him but did not give him back the captain's armband.  

Red menace: Russian players celebrate Andrei Arshavin's goal against Sweden

Hiddink's style is the polar opposite to the "Wazza'"and "Stevie G" England regime of Steve McClaren, which was exposed by Russia last October in Moscow.  

'It's not advice,' Hiddink said. 'I demand a response. I don't want to sound cocky, but if you want to play at international level then the demands I lay down means you can go one of two ways: either fly, or fight.  

'That's the choice we offered. They chose to fight.'  

The response against Sweden was devastating, giving Holland cause for concern ahead of the quarter-final clash in Basel.  

'I told the players that I was proud of them,' Hiddink said.

'I was also curious after the qualification, which we played on an inconsistent basis, one day good and one day bad. But they've shown now in this huge tournament that they can make a habit of playing this kind of football.  

'You cannot guarantee that they will play every game that well, but you can guarantee that players know the principles, what the values are of being in the national team. That's what we've emphasised in our team meetings.'