The following is a match centre with betting tips for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Group E fixture between Serbia and Brazil. The game kicks off on the 28th of June at 4:00 AM AEST. It will be broadcast live on SBS.
View bookmaker promotions for the FIFA World Cup (excludes NSW)
Compare bookmaker odds for the tournament
Serbia
- FIFA World Rank: 34
- Elo Rating: 22
- Qualifying: Won Group D with a 6-3-1 record in the UEFA Confederation qualification.
Squad:
- Coach: Mladen Krstajić
- Goalkeepers: Vladimir Stojkovic (Partizan Belgrade), Predrag Rajkovic (Maccabi Tel Aviv), Marko Dmitrovic (Eibar)
- Defenders: Aleksandar Kolarov (AS Roma), Branislav Ivanovic (Zenit St. Petersburg), Dusko Tosic (Guangzhou R&F), Antonio Rukavina (Villarreal), Milos Veljkovic (Werder Bremen), Milan Rodic (Red Star Belgrade), Uros Spajic (Krasnodar), Nikola Milenkovic (Fiorentina)
- Midfielders: Nemanja Matic (Manchester United), Luka Milivojevic (Crystal Palace), Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Lazio), Marko Grujic (Liverpool), Adem Ljajic (Torino), Dusan Tadic (Southampton), Filip Kostic (Hamburg SV), Andrija Zivkovic (Benfica), Nemanja Radonjic (Red
- Forwards: Aleksandar Mitrovic (Newcastle), Aleksandar Prijovic (PAOK), Luka Jovic (Benfica)
Recent results:
- Serbia 1 – 2 Switzerland
22/06/2018
FIFA World Cup, played in Russia - Costa Rica 0 – 1 Serbia
17/06/2018
FIFA World Cup, played in Russia - Serbia 5 – 1 Bolivia
09/06/2018
Friendly, played in Austria - Serbia 0 – 1 Chile
04/06/2018
Friendly, played in Austria - Serbia 2 – 0 Nigeria
27/03/2018
Friendly, played in England - Serbia 1 – 2 Morocco
23/03/2018
Friendly, played in Italy - South Korea 1 – 1 Serbia
14/11/2017
Friendly, played in Korea Republic - China 0 – 2 Serbia
10/11/2017
Friendly, played in China - Serbia 1 – 0 Georgia
09/10/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Serbia - Austria 3 – 2 Serbia
06/10/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Austria - Ireland 0 – 1 Serbia
05/09/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Ireland - Serbia 3 – 0 Moldova
02/09/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Serbia
Statistics: (last four years):
- H2H Record: 17-8-14
- O/U record
- O/U 0.5 record: 38-1
- O/U 1.5 record: 32-7
- O/U 2.5 record: 19-20
- O/U 3.5 record: 8-31
- O/U 4.5 record: 5-34
- O/U 5.5 record: 1-38
- Wins
- Total wins: 17
- Won by 1 goal: 7
- Won by 2 goals: 6
- Won by 3 goals: 3
- Won by 4 goals: 1
- Won by 5 goals: 0
- Won by 5+ goals: 0
- Won to nil 11
- Losses
- Total losses: 14
- Lost by 1 goal: 8
- Lost by 2 goals: 3
- Lost by 3 goals: 3
- Lost by 4 goals: 0
- Lost by 5 goals: 0
- Lost by 5+ goals: 0
- Lost to nil 6
- Clean Sheets and BTTS
- Total Games: 39
- Clean Sheets: 12
- Held Scoreless: 7
- Both Teams Scored: 21
Brazil
- FIFA World Rank: 2
- Elo Rating: 1
- Qualifying: First place in the CONMEBOL qualifiers with a 12-5-1 record.
Squad:
- Coach: Adenor Leonardo Bacchi (Tite)
- Goalkeepers: Alisson (Roma), Ederson (Manchester City), Cassio (Corinthians)
- Defenders: Miranda (Inter Milan), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Thiago Silva (Paris Saint-Germain), Geromel (Gremio), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Fagner (Corinthians), Danilo (Manchester City), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid)
- Midfielders: Casemiro (Real Madrid), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Paulinho (Barcelona), Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan), Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona), Willian (Chelsea), Fred (Shakhtar Donetsk)
- Forwards: Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City), Firmino (Liverpool), Taison (Shakhtar Donetsk), Douglas Costa (Juventus)
Recent results:
- Brazil 2 – 0 Costa Rica
22/06/2018
FIFA World Cup, played in Russia - Brazil 1 – 1 Switzerland
17/06/2018
FIFA World Cup, played in Russia - Austria 0 – 3 Brazil
10/06/2018
Friendly, played in Austria - Croatia 0 – 2 Brazil
03/06/2018
Friendly, played in England - Germany 0 – 1 Brazil
27/03/2018
Friendly, played in Germany - Russia 0 – 3 Brazil
23/03/2018
Friendly, played in Russia - England 0 – 0 Brazil
14/11/2017
Friendly, played in England - Japan 1 – 3 Brazil
10/11/2017
Friendly, played in France - Brazil 3 – 0 Chile
10/10/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Brazil - Bolivia 0 – 0 Brazil
05/10/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Bolivia - Colombia 1 – 1 Brazil
05/09/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Colombia - Brazil 2 – 0 Ecuador
31/08/2017
WC qualifiers, played in Brazil
Statistics: (last four years):
- H2H Record: 33-10-6
- O/U record
- O/U 0.5 record: 46-3
- O/U 1.5 record: 38-11
- O/U 2.5 record: 25-24
- O/U 3.5 record: 12-37
- O/U 4.5 record: 4-45
- O/U 5.5 record: 2-47
- Wins
- Total wins: 33
- Won by 1 goal: 10
- Won by 2 goals: 10
- Won by 3 goals: 8
- Won by 4 goals: 3
- Won by 5 goals: 1
- Won by 5+ goals: 1
- Won to nil 23
- Losses
- Total losses: 6
- Lost by 1 goal: 3
- Lost by 2 goals: 1
- Lost by 3 goals: 1
- Lost by 4 goals: 0
- Lost by 5 goals: 0
- Lost by 5+ goals: 1
- Lost to nil 5
- Clean Sheets and BTTS
- Total Games: 49
- Clean Sheets: 26
- Held Scoreless: 8
- Both Teams Scored: 18
Group E Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Brazil | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 |
| 2 |  |
Switzerland | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 4 |
| 3 |  |
Serbia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 |  |
Costa Rica (E) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 0 |
(E) Eliminated
Commentary
Serbia started their campaign with a 1-0 win over Costa Rica. It was a scrappy, tight counter until Aleksandar Kolarov’s superb free kick in the 56th minute. After that Serbia looked very comfortable as Costa Rica failed to record another shot on target until the 91st minute. Serbia then suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to Switzerland. They completely dominated the first half and led 1-0 at the break before it all fell apart in the second spell. Serbia had a strong second half penalty appeal turned down and conceded 52nd and 90th minute goals. They have the unwanted statistic of having lost each of the last six World Cup matches in which they have conceded a goal. In team news, Serbia have six players at risk of suspension due to yellow cards, but coach Mladen Krstajic is expected to stick with his first-choice side given the need for a win.
Brazil commenced their campaign with a 1-1 draw with Switzerland. Apart from Philippe Coutinho’s stunning strike to take the lead, the performance didn’t live up to the high expectations surrounding the side, with Neymar in particular having an underwhelming game and their defence looking suspect. Brazil then beat Costa Rica 2-0, with both goals coming in second half stoppage time after a sustained siege of the Costa Rican penalty area. Brazil were pedestrian in the first half and only really started to push for goals with urgency in the second spell. It continues to be an unimpressive tournament for Brazil and star player Neymar was lucky not to have been booked for a dive against Costa Rica. Despite the criticism of their form, Brazil are unbeaten in 13 games, with a 9-4-0 record, and have conceding just three goals in that run. looking back further, they have lost just on match in their last 21 fixtures, scoring 47 goals while conceding just 5. In team news, Danilo and Douglas Costa have been ruled out through injury.
Betting
bet365 odds (subject to change):
Compare the latest bookmaker odds for Serbia vs. Brazil
This is one of those great fixtures where both sides could still top Group E, finish runners up, or be eliminated, depending on how this and the Switzerland vs. Costa Rica fixture pan out. Brazil will be guaranteed progression if they draw this fixture. Serbia could progress with a draw, but will want to win to avoid having to rely on Costa Rica beating Switzerland by more than one goal.
History is against Serbia winning here. Including as Yugoslavia, Serbia have a 2-7-10 record against Brazil, who have lost just once in 21 games and are unbeaten in 13. A draw isn’t out of the question, however. Brazil have only won 1 of their last 7 World Cup games against European sides, going 1-2-4. They have been notoriously slow starters in this World Cup, managing just one shot on target in the first half of each match. In one interesting clash of statistics, Brazil have only conceded 3 goals in their last 13 fixtures, while Serbia have scored in 13 of their last 14.
Given Brazil only need a draw, I expect they will start conservatively like they did against Costa Rica. If they need goals at halftime to progress, Brazil will then push to attack harder. For this reason I will back Serbia in the halftime Asian handicap market. One caveat to this tip is at the time of writing the Group F matchday 3 fixtures haven’t commenced. By the time this fixture kicks off, Brazil will know the winner and runner up of Group F. Their strategy may be impacted by where Germany ends up in Group F given that the two groups are paired in the Round of 16.
Betting tip: back Serbia +0.5 in the first half Asian handicap at 1.67 (Sportsbet)
Notes
- FIFA World rankings are from the 7th of June and sourced from https://www.fifa.com/fifa-world-ranking/ranking-table/men/index.html
- The World Football Elo Ratings are from the 11th of June and are based on the Elo rating system, developed by Dr. Arpad Elo. This system is used by the international chess federation to rate chess players and is considered by many to be a superior rating tool to the one used by FIFA. The ratings have been sourced from https://www.eloratings.net/.
- Squad lists sourced from http://www.skysports.com/football/news/12098/11374464/every-world-cup-squad-listed-argentina-brazil-russia-and-more