Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has insisted that he never had any doubts about including Oscar in his starting lineup ahead of his team's match against Croatia.
Oscar endured a disappointing end to the Premier League campaign with Chelsea, but after the midfielder played a starring role in Brazil's 3-1 win over Croatia on Thursday evening, Scolari was quick to praise the efforts of the 22-year-old.
Scolari is quoted by BT Sport as saying: "Our statistics after the game show that he was the one who made the most tackles, and made lots of dribbles and crosses - he was our most creative player on the night.
"He was fantastic and that's the kind of player he is and I have always believed in him. Any doubts came from [the media]. His level may have dropped but I never lost belief in him."
Brazil will face Mexico in their second game in Group A on Tuesday.
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Netherlands
Senegal
Ecuador
Qatar
England
USA
Iran
Wales
Argentina
Poland
Mexico
Saudi Arabia
France
Australia
Tunisia
Denmark
Japan
Spain
Germany
Costa Rica
Morocco
Croatia
Belgium
Canada
Brazil
Switzerland
Cameroon
Serbia
Portugal
South Korea
Uruguay
Ghana
