FIFA World Cup 2018: Group E analysis (Brazil, Switzerland, Serbia, Costa Rica)

Group E

Countries: Brazil, Switzerland, Serbia, Costa Rica.

Fixtures:

June 17: Costa Rica vs Serbia (5.30 pm IST, Samara)

Brazil vs Switzerland (11.30 pm IST, Rostov)

June 22: Brazil vs Costa Rica (5.30 pm IST, Krestovsky)

Serbia vs Switzerland (11.30 pm IST, Kaliningrad)

June 27: Brazil vs Serbia (11.30 pm IST, Moscow)

Switzerland vs Costa Rica (11.30 pm IST, Nizhny).

Key game: Brazil vs Switzerland

Interesting battles: Neymar (Brazil) vs Keylor Navas (Costa Rica); Granit Xhaka (Switzerland) vs Philippe Coutinho (Brazil); Nemanja Matic (Serbia) vs Philippe Coutinho (Brazil).

Group prediction: Brazil are the clear favourites and should top the group as other teams pale in comparison with the South Americans in the man-to-man marking. A team comprising of Neymar, Coutinho, Gabriel Jesus, Casemiro, Marcelo, Paulinho etc should not find it tough to emerge the group winner.

10 dias para a Copa do Mundo. Chega logo! 1⃣0⃣▶️🇷🇺 #GigantesPorNatureza #SeleçãoBrasileira pic.twitter.com/sAKLtwTi8F

— CBF Futebol (@CBF_Futebol) June 4, 2018

Having said that, Costa Rica, who have one of the best goalkeepers in Keylor Navas in their ranks, Serbia and Switzerland, teams full of players who have rich European experience, are capable of stretching the five-time champions. The European sides will be hoping to emulate Norway, who shocked Brazil in a Group A match in the 1998 World Cup in France.

Players like Serbia's Matic, who plays for Manchester United, and Switzerland's Granit Xhaka, who plies his trade in Arsenal, know a thing or two about big time football and would not get easily bogged down by Brazil's awesome reputation. The group looks plain and smooth from the periphery but the undercurrents are strong.

Let’s keep getting those results! pic.twitter.com/LfvxU5eJUh

— Nemanja Matic (@_Nemanjamatic) April 2, 2018

Group picks: Brazil and Switzerland should form the 1-2 in this group unless Serbia find their mojo. Costa Rica should be happy playing the Little Brother part in the big boys game.

GROUP G | GROUP H" title="GROUP F| GROUP G | GROUP H" />GROUP F| GROUP G | GROUP H