Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari rejected claims they were favoured by the referee and heaped praise on Neymar after the forward scored twice in a 3-1 win over Croatia in the World Cup opening game Thursday.

Brazil fell behind after 11 minutes through Marcelo's own goal but Neymar led the comeback, scoring with a left-footed shot from outside the area and then with a controversial penalty awarded by Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura.

Scolari, who said he agreed with the call, responded by reminding Kovac that Brazil has won the World Cup more times than any country and did it without any help from referees.

Scolari, Neymar and the rest of the Brazil team are under intense pressure as local fans expect their team to deliver the country's first World Cup title on home soil.

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