Brazil scored four first half goals to cruise past South Korea and into the World Cup 2022 quarter-finals. Neymar Jr returned from injury to help Brazil thump South Korea 4-1, setting up a World Cup quarter-final clash against Croatia. Four unanswered Brazilian goals in the first half at Stadium 974 on Monday set an imperious tone for a team with their sights firmly on a sixth World Cup title. And while the game settled in the second period, it was never sluggish or scrappy, and a spirited South Korea fought hard to score a consolation goal in the 76th minute. If this match had been held in Education City, we would be calling it a footballing lesson. It took just seven minutes for Brazil to get off the mark, with Raphael Raphinha picking up the ball just outside the box and rushing in on the right side, sending in a pass to Neymar. The Paris Saint-Germain number 10 was brought down by his marker and the ball ended up at the feet of Vinicius Junior, in acres of space. The Real Madrid star steadied himself before placing it to the right of Kim Seung-gyu in the South Korean goal. South Korea had their share of chances, but were outclassed in every part of the pitch. Brazil will face Croatia in the quarter-finals at Education City on Friday. The Croats beat Japan 3-1 on penalties in the round of 16 to book their place in the quarter-finals of the World Cup. A goalless extra time followed 90 minutes that had finished 1-1 with goals from Japan’s Daizen Maeda and Croatia’s Ivan Perisic.
