Russia Coach Blames World Cup Elimination On Blinding Laser Beam

Russia coach Fabio Copello has an interesting explanation for his team’s early exit from the 2014 World Cup. Russia was eliminated in Thursday’s 1-1 draw against Algeria, and Copello claims that a laser beam pointed at his goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev just before Algeria scored the equalizer is to blame. “He was blinded by the laser beam,” Capello said to the Guardian. “There are pictures. You can see that in the footage. This not an excuse, it is a fact.” It’s impossible to know for sure if the laser hindered Akinfeev’s ability to make the save. One thing we do know, though, is that there likely won’t be any lasers at the next World Cup in 2018 because Russia is the host.