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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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