JESUS OR FIRMINO?

out with a foot injury.

Costa Rica opened Group E with a 1-0 loss to Serbia, conceding the goal from a direct free kick.

“I watched part of their game against Serbia,” said Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho, the team’s scorer against Switzerland, “and it was decided on a set piece. It’s a team that likes to play. We will stick to our game, playing with joy and audacity.”

The Brazilian federation attempted to allay concerns over Neymar’s condition, saying the injury is not serious, but he was visibly in pain during Tuesday’s session, having been seen limping after the Switzerland game.

If Neymar is ruled out, pacy winger Douglas Costa would be a possible replacement. Firmino could also play out wide, in a move that would keep Jesus in a central position. Costa Rica topped their group and reached the quarter-finals at the World Cup in 2014 by being compact, hard to break down, fearless and playing on the counter-attack. Judging by the Serbia game, things don’t look much different in the 2018 edition.

Los Ticos ultimately were undone by a moment of technical brilliance by Aleksandar Kolarov and held their own for most of the match, but whether the second-oldest squad at the World Cup has it in them to hold off Brazil is another matter.

Coming off another injury-hit season, this time on loan at Real Betis in Spain, forward Joel Campbell provided a spark as a 67th-minute substitute against Serbia and will be pushing for a start.

There could be a well-known face at the match: Sepp Blatter is expected to be in attendance.

The former FIFA president is banned from official football duty until October 2021 for financial misconduct during his 17-year rule, and has rarely flown since American and Swiss investigators unsealed sweeping investigations in May 2015.

He is in Russia, though, fulfilling a two-year-old invitation from the country’s president, Vladimir Putin.