KEIR RADNEDGE in DOHA: Neymar is back, the swagger is back and, after the awkward interlude of a defeat by Cameroon, so are Brazil.

The five-times World Cup winners and pre-finals favourites needed only six minutes to take the lead against South Korea and another six minutes to extend it. Vinicius Jr sent the samba drums hammering with the first goal and the rhythm was redoubled as Neymar (penalty), Richarlison and Lucas Paqueta all piled in.

Brazil relaxed in the second half and settled for a modest 4-1 win. After all, it was the first time they had scored four goals in the first half of a match in the finals since a 5-0 win over Mexico in Switzerland in 1954.

An ankle injury in the opening win over Serbia had sidelined Neymar from the last two group stage matches but he was clearly intent on enjoying this one in pursuit of the World Cup-winner’s medal which, for all Brazil’s history, has never been his.

For the first 15 minutes the Koreans might as well not have been on the pitch. This match was not about them.

First Raphinha surged down the right and cut back a cross which skidded behind Neymar but set up perfectly for Vinicius to open the scoring. Then Richarlison was victim of a clumsy tackle and Neymar beat goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu with the soft penalty for his 76th goal on behalf of Brazil, one fewer than Pele’s record.

Neymar, in celebrating the goal, ran to hug defender Alex Telles who has been ruled out of the finals by injury. Notably he did not fulfil a promise he had made during the recent bitterly contested election campaign to dedicate his first goal in Qatar to Jairo Bolsonaro, now the outgoing president.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward is the third Brazilian to have scored in three or more finals tournaments after Pele (1958, 1962, 1966, 1970) and Ronaldo (1998, 2002 and 2006).

Korean response

Hee-chan Hwang offered a brief Korean respite of a drive which Alisson tipped over the bar but it was entirely against the flow and Brazil soon proved the point.

Richarlison scored a third in the 29th minute after some high-speed interpassing with Casemiro and Luvcas Paqueta delivered a devastating fourth to a chip over the defence from Vinicius barely seven minutes later.

The Koreans goal survived another couple of scares before halftime but this was also scary stuff for all of Brazil’s prospective future opponents.

Son Heung-min came close to scoring for South Korea at the start of the second half but he was foiled by keeper Alisson and the patter of Brazilian dominance was soon resumed.

Raphinha had a fierce shot saved but Brazil were becoming bored and soon the march of the substitites began, including Neymar and Vinicius who might still have fancied getting in on the goal-scoring act.

South Korea, to their immense credit, kept on playing as if it were still goalless and well deserved the 76th-minute consolation rocketed up past Alisson by Paik Seung-ho. Alisson, as if he had endured a tough evening, was also substituted by Weverton.

There will be tougher to come, indeed – starting with Croatia in the quarter-finals on Friday.

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