Brazil 2014: Host Country Defeat Croatia 3-1 in The Opening Match
By Opeyemi Oladunjoye
Brazil opened their World Cup campaign with a 3-1 victory over Croatia courtesy of two goals from Neymar and a late third from Oscar.
Neymar had earlier equalised with a low long-range strike which crept beyond goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa’s dive after the croatian side had taken a deserved lead in the 11th minute through Marcelo’s own goal.
Neymar put his side ahead in the 71st minute after Japanese referee, Yuichi Nishimura ruled that Fred’s tumble to the floor following slight contact from Croatia defender, Dejan Lovren warranted a penalty. Oscar completed the scoring in the Group A opener in added time.
The other Group A members, Mexico and Cameroon will play on friday at 16:00 GMT, while group B members Spain and Netherlands will go head to head at 19:00 GMT as Chile and Australia face off at 21:00 GMT.
