World Cup 2014 - 5 Things We Learned From The Opening Weekend

3. Neymar To The Double

The opening match of this year's tournament saw the hosts paired with Croatia in a tricky first tie. The build up to the game was marred by violence and protests in the streets of Sao Paulo and the organisers were no doubt desperate for the national team to detract from the unwanted media coverage with an opening win. Prior to the tournament pundits and experts alike were unanimous in their opinion that for the first time in living memory Brazil were better defensively than going forward and that much of the nation's hopes rested upon Neymar's shoulders. If the Croatia encounter is an indicator of what is to come then only one of those predictions will be correct. From Marcelo's unfortunate own goal the Brazil defence looked shaky and unsure of themselves. Even the usually calm and collected Thiago Silva struggled to organise his troops and Key Moment: Neymar was lucky to stay on the pitch after catching Luka Modric with a red card during the first half. Minutes later the Brazilian wonder kid opened his World Cup account with a low skidding shot that brought Brazil level.