For the second time in 24 hours, a team on the verge of celebrating a place in the semi-finals of Euro 2008 had victory torn from their grasp at the death. For Croatia against Turkey in Vienna on Friday night read the Russians, temporarily denied by Ruud van Nistelrooy’s spectacular 86th-minute equaliser here. The difference, of course, is that Guus Hiddink’s high-energy, high-morale team shook off the body blow and countered with a knockout punch of their own.

Hiddink, the old Dutch master, is at it again. The coaching emeritus who worked wonders with Australia and South Korea in World Cup combat thoroughly enjoyed being a “traitor”, as he put it, to his homeland. How England came to snub him, heaven only knows.

“I don’t want to use big words but it is almost a miracle,” Hiddink said after skipping a deserved jig of delight with his players at full-time. “It is unbelievable how the boys performed. They tactically and physically outplayed the Dutch.”

Holland were favourites not just last night, but in some eyes for the title itself after humiliating Italy in their first match, but they never approached those heady heights here, and were second best throughout. Red-hot Dutch they weren’t. A team blessed with talent that so many others can only envy underachieved yet again.

“We didn’t play football, and never got into the game,” Holland coach Marco van Basten said. “Normally we should have been in better shape than the Russians. We didn’t see that.”

Russia were marvellous. A credit to themselves, to their intelligent, resourceful management and to their domestic club football. Not one of their squad plies his trade in the Premier League – a situation that is certain to change.

Andrei Arshavin, the clever, constructive man of the match, could write his own contract after this, as could Roman Pavlyuchenko, the Spartak Moscow centre-forward. Both scored on a memorable night for the Russians, who have not progressed this far in a major tournament since the collapse of the old Soviet Union.

On this exhilarating form, they will be a major test for the winners of tonight’s quarter-final between Italy and Spain.

Basle city centre had been a sea of orange all afternoon, as was the St Jakob stadium, but many Dutch fans were in pessimistic mood, fearing what Hiddink, their coach from 1994 until 1998, might do to them. It was as if they knew that marvellous start to the championship was too good to be true As it transpired, they had good reason to be apprehensive. Russia were always the better team, having assembled a remarkable recovery. They had a dreadful start to this tournament, when they were given a 4-1 drubbing by Spain, but gained forward momentum with a 1-0 victory over the defending champions, Greece, then hit optimum form in beating Sweden much more convincingly than the 2-0 scoreline would suggest.

Hiddink was concerned by the advantage Holland gained from fielding their reserves for their third group match, against Romania, by which stage they had already qualified for the knockout stages. He needn’t have worried. The night belonged to the men in white. Seizing the initiative from the outset, they threatened Edwin van der Sar’s goal three times in the first seven minutes, and should have had at least one score by way of reward. Manchester United’s goalkeeper flew high to his left to repel a handsome 25-yard free kick from Yuri Zhirkov, was fortunate to see a follow-up shot from Denis Kolodin deflected wide, and ought to have been beaten when Arshavin’s cross from the right picked out Pavlyuchenko, who climbed above Andre Ooijer, only to head negligently over from a central position, seven yards out.

Holland might have taken the lead, against the run of play, after 29 minutes when Rafael van der Vart’s inswinging free kick from the right evaded first Nigel De Jong’s head and then Van Nistelrooy’s right boot by the proverbial hairsbreadth.

But back came the Russians, Igor Semshov evading Ooijer before drilling in a low shot from the left that Van der Sar was happy to turn round his left-hand upright and Kolodin having the United man at full stretch again, this time to touch over a bristling 25-yarder.

In urgent need of improvement, Van Basten sent on Robin Van Persie in place of Dirk Kuyt for the second half, but it was the Russians who continued to play the more assertive, purposeful football, and they had the reward it deserved after 54 minutes, when Arshavin drove to the byline on the left before delivering a cross that Pavlyuchenko buried with an instantaneous left-footed volley at the near post.

It was a real predator’s goal, fit to win any match, and it looked like doing so until the 86th minute, when Van Nistelrooy’s classic diving header, from Wes-ley Sneijder’s left-wing cross, necessitated extra time. Conceding so late would have deflated many teams, as it did poor Croatia, but these Russian bears are made of sterner stuff and reasserted themselves in the additional half hour. They regained the lead after 112 minutes, courtesy of Arshavin’s driving run past Ooijer and cross from the left that Dmitri Torbinski squeezed in at the far post, and the possibility of another shootout lottery, and travesty of justice, was removed when the excellent Arshavin drilled in the third from seven yards, through Van der Sar’s legs.

Dutch indignity and disarray was complete. Italy or Spain had better beware: the Russians are coming.