Brazil 1-1 Switzerland: Neymar and co. suffer unexpected draw despite Coutinho stunner

 Tite's side suffer unexpected draw despite Philippe Coutinho's stunner as Switzerland held Brazil 1-1. 

Another shock result today. 2018 World Cup 1-1 Coutinho (20') Steven Zuber (50') Match Events 3' CHANCE! Dzemaili's shot over the bar! Stoke man Shaqiri works his way to the edge of the box before lifting a low cross towards Dzemaili but the latter leans back as he shoots and he can only fire over the bar. Disappointing but that is a warning sign for Brazil. 6' Xhaka almost tears Neymar's shirt apart but he escapes yellow card! Xhaka gets lucky there as he flies into a tackle and many expected him to get a yellow card. Brazil were still able to break forward but Willian's cross sailed across the face of goal. 

11' Paulinho nearly opens scoring for Brazil! HUGE CHANCE - Brazil pick their way through the Switzerland defence and that man Paulinho does make his way into the box. Neymar dances inside and finds him but Paulinho gets the ball caught under his feet and he somehow misses the bottom corner. That is a big let off for Petkovic's side. 

20' GOAL! Brazil 1-0 Switzerland (Coutinho) WHAT A GOAL!!!!!! Brazil 1-0 Switzerland - Coutinho lights up the Rostov Arena with a simply sensational shot. After collecting possession on the edge of the box, the former Liverpool man opened up his body and curled the ball into the far corner. Sommer had no chance and that was breathtaking! 46' Silva header inches over the bar! CHANCE - Tite's men win another corner and Neymar's cross is met by Silva but the PSG defender can only glance his header over the crossbar. 

50' GOAL! Brazil 1-1 Switzerland (S. Zuber) GOAAALLLLLL SWITZERLAND - Brazil 1-1 Switzerland!   Shaqiri fires in a powerful cross and Brazil fall asleep inside the six-yard box. Zuber cannot believe his luck as he is left unmarked and he powers home a header from close range. Alisson is left helpless and we now have a game on our hands. 

73' Jesus tackled down in the box but ref says no penalty! Brazil scream for a penalty after Jesus goes down after competing with Akanji...they are praying for VAR but the ref waves away any appeals. 

Match Report Brazil continued the trend of tournament favourites underperforming as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Switzerland in their World Cup Group E opener in Rostov. Having bowed out of their home tournament four years ago with a 7-1 semi-final defeat to Germany, Brazil initially started their mission to put that humiliation behind them in stunning fashion when Philippe Coutinho struck a sublime goal to open the scoring. 

Despite dictating the pace of the game, Brazil were never completely dominant and had Switzerland's rather toothless attack to thank for not taking advantage of the possession and space the underdogs were afforded. The five-time winners failed to extend their lead and were punished early in the second half when Steven Zuber lost his marker at a corner and equalised – a goal that might have opened the game up had Brazil been at their best. 

But Tite's side remained somewhat subdued by their own high standards, with Neymar a shadow of his usual talismanic self having only recently recovered from a fractured foot, and their remaining group games with Costa Rica and Serbia now come with more pressure than would have previously been anticipated. Switzerland can reflect on an excellent start to their campaign, having claimed a point from the most difficult of their group matches and improved their chances of reaching the knockout stages for the second consecutive tournament.