Brazil boss Tite won't sacrifice Neymar's 'genius' for good of the team

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AFP Saint Petersburg
Last Updated : Jun 21 2018 | 10:10 PM IST

Brazil coach Tite said he will not tell Neymar to be more of a team player as he insisted the Paris Saint-Germain star is fit for tomorrow's crunch World Cup clash with Costa Rica.

The world's most expensive player had been an injury doubt after hobbling out of training on Tuesday with an ankle problem, 48 hours after he was on the end of 10 fouls from robust Swiss opponents as Brazil opened their campaign with a disappointing 1-1 draw.

But Tite confirmed he will put his faith in the same XI that started against Switzerland in Saint Petersburg as Brazil look to kickstart their quest for a sixth World Cup.

In their desperation for a breakthrough in the final stages against the Swiss, Neymar's team-mates consistently looked to their star man to provide the final finish or pass without success.

And he was criticised for being self-indulgent, often taking too many touches to try and beat Swiss right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner instead of moving the ball on quickly to teammates.

- 'Genius' -
============
"You have to strengthen the team but I'm not going to take away the main characteristics of the players."
"We want to win, it's a World Cup, but the coach is not going to play with the players' health. It's too big a risk."

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First Published: Jun 21 2018 | 10:10 PM IST

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