Brazil 2 Serbia 0 – World Cup LIVE RESULT: Richarlison with both goals as incredible acrobatic volley seals victory
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BRAZIL won their World Cup clash with Serbia thanks to two second-half goals from Richarlison.
The Brazilians dominated throughout but struggled to put a dent into their European opponents until Richarlison tapped home from Vincius Jr's saved effort.
And Richarlison doubled his side's lead minutes later with an incredible acrobatic effort, wrapping up an important three points.
- RESULT: Brazil 2-0 Serbia
- Brazil XI: Alisson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, Sandro; Casemiro, Paqueta; Raphinha, Neymar, Vinicius; Richarlison
- Serbia XI: Vanja; Veljkovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic; Zivkovic, Lukic, Gudelj, Mladenovic; Milinkovic-Savic, Tadic; Mitrovic
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Inside the ground - Samba boys come to town
Sun reporter Phil Thomas reports from Qatar:
HOLD onto your hats…the World Cup starts tonight folks. Yes, I know officially it was Sunday, but let’s be honest – it’s only when Brazil roll into town that things really get going.
Four hours before kick off and the metro carriage packed with Selecao fans en-route to the Lusail Stadium was literally rocking as they bounced up and down to the beating drums.
Most of the venues in Qatar thus far – even though official attendance claims would suggest otherwise – have had their share of empty seats. But not tonight. A ticket to see Brazil is the hottest in town.
The biggest guessing game is how coach Tite’s team will line up. And the general view is that Casemiro will be the ONLY dedicated holding midfielder, in a thrill-a-minute XI.
And while everyone in England reckons the whole thing revolves around Neymar, to Samba fans Richarlison is the main man.
The striker who barely gets a start at Spurs is the focal point and spearhead of a breath-taking attacking cast that is either bold or bananas.
We’ll know which by 9pm, but one thing is certain…if it’s Brazil, it’s going to be spellbinding. It’s never anything else.
It's not a World Cup without Brazil
Brazil have arrived in Qatar as the only nation in World Cup history to have qualified for every tournament since the first edition back in 1930.
It has been 20 years since they got their hands on their fifth World Cup in Seoul.
Pressure is on Tite and his talented squad, ranked number one in the world by FIFA, to live up to the pre-tournament hype.
Credit: Getty Big brother always watching
The Serbia manager gave his thoughts on talk that Brazil had been using a drone to spy on his side’s training sessions:
I don't believe they watched us, who are we for them to watch us? They are a football superpower. I think it's misinformation. And even if it was a drone, I don't know what they would have seen, nothing special.
Dragan Stojkovic
History offers Serbia no favours
Brazil are unbeaten in 17 matches against Serbia (including Yugoslavia) since an 8-4 defeat in Belgrade in June 1934.
The Selecao only have longer unbeaten runs against Ecuador (20 fixtures from 1942-2000) and Paraguay (18 games from 1954-63).
With talisman Mitrovic not fit to start, it is hard to see how Serbia change the tide tonight.
Boss shaking it up for Brazil
Dragan Stojkovic is set to revert to a three-man defence against tournament favourites Brazil this evening.
They lined up with four at the back in the 5-1 friendly win over Bahrain last week.
Strahinja Pavlovic is expected to join Nikola Milenkovic and Stefan Mitrovic at centre back.
Welcome to Brazil vs Serbia
Regarded by many as favourites to go all the way at the 2022 World Cup, five-times world champions Brazil kick-off their Group G campaign against Serbia at the Lusail Stadium this evening.
Brazil boss Tite is set to have a fully-fit squad available for tonight’s game with Antony, Bruno Guimaraes and Alex Telles all recovering from minor problems.
Thiago Silva is expected to start in a back four alongside Danilo, Marquinhos and Alex Sandro looking to protect Alisson Becker’s goal.
Casemiro and Lucas Paqueta are the two most likely to line up in the centre midfield, while star man Neymar could operate in a number 10 role with wingers Raphina and Vinicius Junior either side of him.
Tottenham’s Richarlison, who has recovered from a calf strain in time for the World Cup, is set to be given the nod ahead of Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus to lead the line.
As for Serbia, Aleksandar Mitrovic has not fully recovered from an ankle injury and is expected to start on the bench, with Luka Jovic in line to start up front alongside Dusan Vlahovic.
Sevilla’s Nemanja Gudelj is poised to start in the centre midfield alongside Lazio star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, with Andrija Zivkovic and Filip Kostic providing width as wing backs, while captain Dusan Tadic is set to start in the number 10 role.