Brazil fab four dazzlingly live up to favourites tag with Korea-ending first-half highlight reel

Brazil’s first-half masterclass swept South Korea aside and set up a quarter-final with the old men of Croatia.

There were two big talking points in the end. Was Richarlison’s goal tonight better than that other brilliant goal he scored? And would Roy Keane and Graeme Souness find Brazil bringing on their third-choice goalkeeper more or less disrespectful than celebrating goals with a little dance?

We had to occupy ourselves with such frippery because other, more valid questions had long since been answered. “Are Brazil better than South Korea?” for instance, was settled within 13 minutes. Likewise “Are Brazil proper favourites for this World Cup?” and “Is Neymar really back to anything like proper fitness, though?”

The 36 minutes in which Brazil danced and dazzled their way to a 4-0 lead that thoroughly settled this last-16 clash were the most compelling spell of attacking football produced by anyone at this tournament so far, and that includes anything we’ve seen from Kylian Mbappe and his mates, or Spain, or (heaven help us) England.

It was an astonishing blitzkrieg to start the game and while it must be noted that South Korea were bafflingly complicit in their own downfall having bravely if entirely stupidly decided to engage Brazil in a toe-to-toe scrap, what the World Cup favourites produced was mesmerising.

By the time Richarlison produced the crowning moment of the evening it was already 2-0, Vinicius Jr taking a composing touch before curling the opener and Neymar converting a penalty via the medium of dance.

Brazil’s third goal, though, was the truly special one. The one that will join the pantheon of great Brazilian World Cup goals. That it came from a move instigated by and finished by Richarlison via Brazil’s two centre-backs only made it so much better.

It began with Richarlison combining showboating and muscle to bring the ball under his spell with a series of headed keepy-uppies that we only hope no Nottingham Forest supporters were unfortunate enough to witness knowing how these things can upset them. From there the Spurs man found Marquinhos whose cutback was dummied by Richarlison and found Thiago Silva, whose pass back for Richarlison was immaculate. The finish was also immaculate, and inevitable.

Then, just as everyone was getting their head round the idea of a fringe Spurs player having scored the World Cup’s two best goals, we all had to come to terms with the sight of West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta…