First Half: 1-1
The kick off to the much awaited FIFA 2014 World Cup was a far more pompous affair than expected. Players of both sides seemed to be pumped up for the first match with the hosts seeming all geared to stamp their authority on the tournament. However, with the Croats determined to maintain their unbroken streak, the match was all set to be a humdinger.First Half: The Brazilians got off to a nervy start with Olic's header missing the goal by a whisker. Just as Brazil seemed to start getting a grip on the game, they were in for a shocker when an own goal from Marcelo put Croatia ahead. Despite the hosts maintaining possession, the Croats deserved the credit for pressing high up the pitch and taking the opportunity to counter. Moreover, this was the first time Brazil scored an own goal in a World Cup fixture. Nevertheless, the Brazilians started to press forward with Oscar playing some exquisite football. Stipe Pletikosa, the Croatian goalkeeper, had to make a world class save to deny Oscar an equaliser. As frustrations among supporters and players alike seemed to rise, Neymar picked up the first yellow card of the match through an unnecessary tackle. However, a fine and controlled finish from the Barcelona forward, saw Brazil score an equaliser in the 29th minute. Surprisingly, Paulinho seemed to be carrying out some well calculated attacks from the holding midfield position and Oscar maintained his form through to the end of the first half.
Second Half:Both sides began pressing forward from the onset of the second half. As the pressure began to mount on Brazilian coach Felipe, he sought a far more technical solution by substituting Hernanes for Paulinho and Bernard for Hulk. However, it was an error of judgement by the referee that earned Brazil a chance to take the lead via a penalty. A calm finish by Neymar, left the Croats with a hard decision to rue upon. David Luiz very nearly scored a second own goal, but managed to clear the ball away just in the nick of time. The 82nd minute of the match saw another controversial decision by the referee with Croatia being denied an equaliser. The ball had rebounded to enter the Brazilian net, however the referee claimed to have blown the whistle for a foul on Cesar by Olic. Nevertheless, the Croats began to press in search of the equaliser, however, exposing their defence to an ever ready Brazilian attack. The sublime Samba attack finally paid off when Oscar was finally rewarded for his brilliant play in the closing minutes of the match to put the hosts ahead by three goals to one.It was the first time the Croats had conceded three goals in a World Cup match. They would have felt hard done by the referee's decisions but can take hope from the fact that this was bound to be the toughest game in their group. Felipe Scolari, on the hand, has quite a lot to ponder about with some of the fans doubting their chances of lifting the title.
Final Score : BRAZIL 3 - 1 CROATIA
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