Neymar leaves Brazil dancing to Samba beat

WORLD CUP GROUP A:

The striker’s brilliant individual performance saved the hosts from what could have been an embarrassing opening setback, but that also came courtesy of a series of home decisions — not least the key penalty.

In the end, it was only really Neymar — and perhaps Oscar — that justified the striking confidence Brazil displayed before kick-off. Scolari has three points, but also some cause for concern, not least in defence.