Simply spectacular! Richarlison scores acrobatic volley as Brazil steamroll Serbia

A second-half brace by Richarlison, including a stunning overhead scissor kick, gave tournament favourites Brazil a 2-0 win over Serbia in their opening World Cup game at the Lusail Stadium on Thursday.

The record five-time winners had toiled at times in the first half but improved after the break and were rewarded when Tottenham Hotspur striker Richarlison followed in to score the opener in the 62nd minute when a Vinicius Junior shot was saved.

Vinicius then set up Richarlison to score again in the 73rd minute with a stunning acrobatic effort that is surely the goal of the World Cup so far.

The result continues Brazil's superb record in the World Cup group stage, in which their last defeat came in 1998 against Norway, when they had already secured a place in the next round.

Tite's side are now already on top of Group G ahead of Switzerland, who beat Cameroon 1-0 earlier and who are Brazil's next opponents.

The scoreline here was the same as when these sides met in the group stage in 2018 but Brazil are determined to do far better than four years ago, when they lost to Belgium in the quarter-finals.

They have come to Qatar as the favourites for a sixth title, two decades after their last victory.

Other results in the opening round of matches in Qatar served as a warning, with their great rivals Argentina suffering a shock defeat to Saudi Arabia at the same stadium and Germany being shocked by Japan.

However, Brazil would have known not to take Serbia lightly, given that the side who lie 21st in the FIFA rankings are one of Europe's most improved teams and topped their qualifying group above Portugal.

Yet it still would have been a huge shock for Brazil to lose at a ground where they intend to return for the final on December 18.

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