Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Switzerland on Sunday night was hardly the ideal preparation for the tournament favourites and the aim is to quickly bounce back when they take on Costa Rica. They, too, put in a good account of themselves in their Group E match up at the weekend, but ultimately fell to a 1-0 loss to Serbia courtesy of an Aleksandar Kolarov free-kick.
Tite will look for an immediate response on Friday when his players take to the field against Costa Rica and while Neymar endured a scare in training with an ankle issue, he could name the same XI once more. That would see Coutinho start in a more reserved midfield role with a license to press forward.
.png "The Best Bet: Coutinho to add to his World Cup tally")
The Barcelona star was crucial against Switzerland, scoring a rasping long range effort to put Brazil ahead and with Costa Rica expected to sit deep and minimise the space around their box, the Selecao may have to make the most of their chances from distance to beat Keylor Navas and put their first win on the board at the 2018 World Cup.
With Neymar, Gabriel Jesus and Willian looking to peg the defence back, utilising Coutinho’s statistically calculated WhoScored.com strength of ‘long shots’ could be the most effective way to breaking down Costa Rica. Indeed, Coutinho to score anytime is available at 2.75 with Betfair and Paddy Power and is certainly worth a look in.
