Brazil aim for last 32 as World Cup goes into hectic phase

Brazil will seek to book their place in the last 32 of the World Cup tonight when they face Scotland as the tournament shifts to a breathless six games a day.

Five-time World Cup winners Brazil will expect to go through but they come up against a Scotland side in Miami determined to qualify for the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.

Morocco, who held Brazil to a 1-1 draw in an early highlight of the tournament, will favor their chances against already-eliminated Haiti and are still in the running to top Group C.

Such an outcome could potentially complicate the path of Carlo Ancelotti's Brazil later in the competition.

Ancelotti said on Tuesday Neymar had recovered from injury and the 34-year-old could make his first appearance of the tournament against the Scots.

"He can play, he's doing well, he trained very well. I'm very happy with him," said the Italian coach, adding the forward "brings experience, understanding of the game, and helps the younger players."

He has not played for Brazil since October 2023.

Neymar's inclusion in the matchday squad will help make up for the absence of winger Raphinha, who is out injured for around two weeks.

This will be the fifth time Brazil meet Scotland in the World Cup group stages, winning three and drawing one of their previous meetings.

That draw came in their first tournament meeting in 1974 when Brazil progressed ahead of Scotland on goal difference.

Non-stop action

On a dizzying day of action when the final games in each group will be played simultaneously, co-hosts Mexico know they are already guaranteed of playing in the knockout round.

The Mexicans won Group A after two victories and will play the Czech Republic, who need a victory to stand any chance of going through to the last 32.

South Africa improved dramatically in their last game to draw with the Czechs after a pitiful performance in the tournament curtain raiser against Mexico, when they had two men sent off and lost 2-0.

They need to beat Son Heung-min's South Korea, who themselves are targeting the knockout phase.

The finale to Group C sees co-hosts Canada take on Switzerland in Vancouver with top spot in the pool up for grabs.

However unlikely, both sides could yet miss out on the last 32 with a heavy defeat.

Bosnia-Herzegovina and 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar -- who were thumped 6-0 by Canada in their last outing -- meet in the group's other game, and both have an outside chance of qualifying.

The action on Wednesday is the first of four days of six games, the result of a tournament expanded for the first time to 48 teams.

On Tuesday, Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo silenced his critics as he became the first man to score in six different World Cups

Ronaldo, 41, admitted he had spent a "dark week" fielding criticism after a lacklustre display in Portugal's opening 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

But the veteran striker roared back to life with two goals as Portugal kickstarted their campaign with a 5-0 drubbing of Group K rivals Uzbekistan in Houston.

"I can say it was a very tough week, a difficult week, a week in which public opinion was very harsh on us, on all the players, especially on the coach," Ronaldo said of Roberto Martinez.

England meanwhile were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw with Ghana that meant their bid to reach the last 32 comes down to their final group game against Panama, who were eliminated by a 1-0 loss to Croatia.

Ghana must also avoid defeat in their final match against Croatia to progress but Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz felt they could have had more as they were denied a potential second-half penalty against England.

"The VAR went for a coffee," Queiroz said of the decision not to award "a clear penalty" for Ezri Konsa's challenge on Prince Adu.

Colombia booked their ticket for the last 32 with a 1-0 win against the Democratic Republic of Congo.