Roberto Carlos to sit out Costa Rica clash

Brazil boss Felipe Scolari decided to leave out the Real Madrid left back and give him a rest, with the South Americans already in the knockout stages with two wins from their first two matches against Turkey and China.

He had recovered from a slight calf problem on Monday and was declared fit to play against the Costa Ricans, if required.

However, Scolari has wisely decided to leave him out, acknowledging the fact that Roberto Carlos had endured a long season with his club in Spain and Europe.

"I'm feeling a bit sad to be out of the match," the Real Madrid star said. "I worked hard on my recovery (from the calf problem).

"But I respect Mr. Scolari's decision.

"He called me to explain to me that he wants to be able to count on me to be in better shape to play against teams who are going to be stronger in the next matches."

Parma's Junior will be the likely replacement for Roberto Carlos on Thursday and is an ideal understudy in the left back berth, as he possesses similar speed, a powerful shot, and strong ability to cross.

Scolari may make two further changes for the Costa Rica clash, with Ronaldinho and Roque Junior both carrying a yellow card each and a booking in Thursday's match would rule them out for their second round fixture.

However, the four-time world champions made it clear that they would not take it easy against their Latin American cousins, who need a result in order to join Brazil in the second round.

Brazil captain Cafu said: "If they think it's going to be easy, they're in for a surprise."

Roque Junior echoed the sentiments of his skipper, by saying: "The team will go on the field with the idea of winning and becoming World Champions."