Brazil break deadlock late, beat Costa Rica 2-0 thanks to Coutinho and Neymar

FULL TIME: Brazil 2 - Costa Rica 0

Costa Rica will feel hard done by.

It took 91 minutes but Brazil finally scored on Costa Rica, thanks to Phillipe Coutinho, who broke through the line and toed in a shot past Costa Rica keeper Keylor Navas, who up to that point had been the man of the match.

Neymar, who dropped to his knees and began to cry following the final whistle, tapped home a volley five minutes later to put the game beyond doubt, and Brazil collectively breathed a sigh of relief as they won their game 2-0 and avoided serious trouble in the group stage.

Costa Rica will regret not taking some chances, and for wasting what was an incredible 90 minutes of team defending, but in the end, Brazil had just a bit too much quality.

GOAL COUTINHO 90+1’

GOAL NEYMAR 90+7’

Preview

Neymar to start for Brazil

There was a question ahead of Friday morning’s Brazil vs. Costa Rica match whether Neymar would be fit enough to go after tweaking his ankle in training, but it appears he’s feeling healthy enough to make a run at it.

Otherwise, the side looks pretty consistent with how Brazil lined up in their first game, with goalscorer Coutinho back in the No. 10 role and a hearty midfield of Paulinho and Casemiro.

For Costa Rica, it looks like they’ve brought Bryan Ruiz back into the midfield in a defensive 5-4-1, but he will most likely be given a bit of freedom to roam.

Brazil and Costa Rica lineups

Brazil vs. Costa Rica time, TV channel and streaming info

Time: 11 a.m. ET

TV: FS1, Telemundo

Streaming: Available for free with TV provider through FOX Sports Go (English) or Telemundo Deportes en vivo (Spanish). Also available on subscriptions services like Fubo and Hulu.

Neymar is the key for Brazil

Brazil loves to build its attack around getting the ball to Neymar in space on the left wing, but in the first game at least, Switzerland effectively chopped that strategy down by chopping Neymar down, fouling him constantly and not letting him get into a rhythm. Costa Rica isn’t afraid to do the same, and if Neymar isn’t fully healthy, this could be a problem for Brazil again. Let’s see if he can make something happen.

Bryan Ruiz will need to be the man who springs Costa Rica on the counter

Costa Rica has a fantastic goalie in Keylor Navas, a committed group of players who play well together and organized, and then Bryan, their creative attacking force. He won’t have many opportunities today against a Brazil side that will most likely dominate possession, but he has the quality to take advantage if he does get the ball on the break.

Things to read before the match:

Brazil tie Switzerland 1-1 in disappointing performance from World Cup favorites

Brazil tied Switzerland, 1-1, on Sunday in the final game of Day 4 of the World Cup. It’s a massive result for a Switzerland side that looked completely outmatched for the first 45 minutes of the game, then gained a little composure, scored a goal off a set piece, and then defended beautifully to see out the match. Brazil will be disappointed to not pull out three points in the first match of a a tournament they expect to compete for, if not win outright.

Neymar leaves Brazil’s World Cup practice with ankle injury

Switzerland’s tactic of targeting Neymar in their 1-1 draw against Brazil on Sunday has taken a serious toll on the Seleção star.