"I'll be in Russia for a few days to watch the games. We'll watch the players more than the games," Gattuso was quoted as saying by the Italian website Calciomercato.

According to the website , the opening match will be a perfect opportunity to observe Russia's "greatest hope" Golovin, who has been capped 19 times for Russia since his senior debut in 2015, including three matches at UEFA Euro 2016.

The 22-year-old made a total of 113 appearances for his current club CSKA Moscow since 2015, scoring 13 goals and lifting the Russian Premier League trophy in 2016.

Russia will face Saudi Arabia at Moscow's 81,000-seater Luzhniki Stadium on Thursday, before taking on Egypt and Uruguay in their other two Group A matches.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be held at 12 stadiums in 11 Russian cities from June 14 to July 15.