Neymar: 'Ready and focused to win this trophy' | OneFootball

Brazil's Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar Jr was in bullish mood after recovering from an ankle sprain earlier in the tournament and providing a goal and an assist as the Selecão beat South Korea 4-1 to book a place in the World Cup quarter-finals against Croatia.

Monday night saw a jubilant Neymar return to action and star for his country as they cruised past South Korea and into the quarters. Despite fears for his further participation in the tournament following his ankle sprain in Brazil's 2-0 win over Serbia, Neymar showed few signs of his two-week physiotherapy race against the clock as he scored in his third World Cup finals, equalling the record of Pele and Ronaldo. "I was very scared, because I really believed in myself after my good start to the season," said the man of the hour. "Getting hurt like that was very painful. I cried all night afterwards, but everything turned out fine in the end. It was worth staying until 11 a.m. the next day with the physio, and then every day after that."

Indeed, Neymar was in dazzling form and wasted little time in setting up Vinicius Jr for the opener (7') before a trademark penalty (13') saw him equal the record, held by Pele and Ronaldo, of scoring in three World Cup finals.

He also earned the Player of the Match award, leaving fellow scorer Richarlison in little doubt as to whether Brazil prefer playing with or without the uber-talented Paris Saint-Germain man. "It's always better to have Neymar with us on the field," said the Tottenham striker. "He keeps two or three opponents busy all the time and that gives us more space to attack." 'Time to go further' Now that Neymar has passed the fitness and form test with flying colours, he can look forward to the rest of the tournament, starting with Brazil's quarter-final against Croatia in Doha on Saturday 10 December. "This time it's time to go further," said Neymar. "We dream of the title, of course, but we must go step by step. There are three games left, and we are ready and focused to win this trophy." >> Mbappé: 'World Cup my only dream'

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