Neymar puts Brazil in a panic as he goes down holding his ankle in training session

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The whole of Brazil had their hearts in their mouths as star forward Neymar went down with an ankle injury during training, sparking doubts about his World Cup fitness.

The Barcelona star rolled his ankle during the selecao’s training session outside Rio de Janeiro forcing him to receive treatment on the pitch.

However, after spending some time on the floor, the World Cup’s poster-boy was able to pick himself up and walk gingerly away.

Neymar was soon able to resume training and looks set to be fit to take his place in the starting line-up on against Croatia on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Brazil have been paying extra attention to their defence ahead of the opening game.

Manager Luiz Felipe Scolari spent part of the team’s training session on Monday making adjustments to his defensive setup, stopping practice several times to reposition players until he was satisfied.

Although Brazil didn’t concede a goal in their two warm-up matches, Scolari said he was not completely satisfied with how his squad played defensively.

One of the coach’s main goals in the last week of preparations was to make sure the team ready defensively in time for the opener.

‘We know that if we don’t concede goals, our chances to win matches increase, because we know the kind of talent we have in attack,’; said Scolari. ‘It’s important we are well prepared on defense so we are not caught by surprise.’

Right back Daniel Alves acknowledged that Brazil’s defence isn’t perfect, but said the team is working to improve before the opener.

When told that Croatia striker Ivica Olic said he saw spaces in Brazil’s defense during the warm-up matches, Alves acknowledged that adjustments still have to be made.

‘Obviously, if we didn’t make mistakes, we would be a perfect team, and that’s not possible,’ the Barcelona defender said. ‘If Olic saw spaces, then we have to make sure we fix that so he can’t find them anymore.’

The last time Brazil conceded a goal was in a 2-1 win over Chile in a friendly last November. Brazil beat Panama 4-0 and Serbia 1-0 last week in the last two matches before for the opening match in Sao Paulo.

‘Physically we are ready, but tactically we still have to adjust a few things,’ Scolari said.

The coach’s other main focus during Monday’s training was on set pieces – another area where he said Brazil still needs to improve.

Brazil are expected to practice again at its training camp outside Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday before traveling to Sao Paulo later in the day for the opener.

Source : Mail Online