Achilles the cat, who has correctly predicted the score of all three World Cup matches played so far in St Petersburg, tipped Nigeria to beat Argentina as the teams battle on Tuesday for a place in the soccer last 16.

Serbia refuses to recognise the independence of its former province Kosovo, whose 1.8 million people are mostly ethnic Albanians, which broke away 10 years ago, and opposed Kosovo's ultimately successful bid to join FIFA.

Switzerland are unlikely to face the same hostility when they face already-eliminated Costa Rica in Group E of the World Cup on Wednesday.

Brazil may have been one of the big disappointments so far at the Russia World Cup, but the pressure is on their opponents Serbia in their final Group E match in Moscow on Wednesday.

The top two teams in each group go into the last 16. In the case of teams finishing level on points, FIFA has put in place seven tie-breakers starting with goal difference and then the number of goals scored in all group matches.

'People sitting in the stands need to know what the rules are. Who is refereeing the game? We need to know. People deserve to know what are the rules of the game and the game belongs to the people.'

France midfielder Paul Pogba said the finals in Russia might be his last World Cup but he hopes he will be fit for more.

Two Swiss government ministers have backed national team players Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri after their controversial goal celebrations in Friday's 2-1 World Cup win over Serbia.

The focus is once again shifting to the South American side's old foe - emotional stability.

Spain midfielder Koke revealed he and his team mates have been unable to watch some World Cup games because it interferes with their 'siesta', the traditional afternoon nap.

Switzerland's never-say-die attitude and will to win was the key to turning around a match in which they had been pummelled by Serbia for much of the first half, Switzerland coach Vladimir Petkovic said on Friday.

Victory over Switzerland would have sent Serbia through with a game to spare but they now face the prospect of getting a result against the five-times World champions who have also yet to secure their place in the last 16.

A 90th-minute goal by Xherdan Shaqiri secured Switzerland a 2-1 victory over Serbia in a blistering-paced World Cup Group E match in Kaliningrad on Friday, putting them in a strong position to go through to the knockout round.

Peru fans take $800 taxi to get to World Cup game

He often wastes good attacking chances by choosing to take a tumble instead and, at a crucial stage during the second half, his behaviour had a contagious effect and his team mates became distracted by all the fuss he created.

Brazil, instantly recognizable in their famous yellow shirts and blue shorts, were kitted out in an all-blue number for the match at the Saint Petersburg Stadium. Costa Rica swapped their red shirt and blue shorts for all-whites.

Dramatic late strikes by Philippe Coutinho and Neymar gave Brazil their first win of the World Cup against Costa Rica in St Petersburg on Friday and broke Central American hearts by sending them out of the tournament.

Brazil might have made a slow start to their World Cup campaign but things are looking up, with feline fortune-teller Achilles predicting a win against Costa Rica hours before kick off in St Petersburg on Friday.

Costa Rica coach Oscar Ramirez could task two of his players with man-marking Brazil playmaker Neymar when the teams clash in St Petersburg on Friday, but said his side would not try to foul the forward out of the game.

England manager Gareth Southgate may be recovering from a dislocated shoulder suffered while jogging, but he may run into more discomfort when deciding whether to drop Raheem Sterling for Marcus Rashford in Sunday's World Cup game against Panama.

Switzerland may not be on the World Cup Easy Street after a draw with mighty Brazil but coach Vladimir Petkovic said on Thursday he believes his team is headed down the right avenue as they prepare to face Serbia in a Group E clash.

FIFA slapped the Mexicans with a CHF 10,000 fine for what it called "discriminatory and insulting chants" during their surprise 1-0 win over Germany on Sunday.

The Brazilian Football Confederation released a video that showed the Paris St Germain player training with the rest of the squad before they flew off to St Petersburg for Friday's Group E match against Costa Rica.

Brazil forward Neymar left training early on Tuesday after feeling pain in his right ankle and will spend the rest of the day undergoing physiotherapy, the Brazilian Football Confederation said.

Brazil need solutions after coming unstuck against Swiss

It's that time of the year when everything looks greener and prettier.

Brazil's stuttering performance stemmed from anxiety at playing their first World Cup game, coach Tite said after their 1-1 draw with Switzerland.

He was a pale shadow of the crowd-pleasing showman widely recognised as the heir to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the greatest player in the world.

Aleksandar Kolarov produced a moment of captain's inspiration, curling home a superb free kick as Serbia got their World Cup Group E campaign up and running with a 1-0 victory over Costa Rica on Sunday.

Branislav Ivanovic will become Serbia's most capped player after he was named in the side for their World Cup Group E opener against Costa Rica at the Samara Arena.

Defensive injury concerns for veteran squad leader Vincent Kompany and Barcelona's Thomas Vermaelen have eased and coach Roberto Martinez has sent standby defender Laurent Ciman home.

Serbia and Costa Rica begin their World Cup campaigns on Sunday with the teams likely to adopt contrasting approaches to making the most of their limited resources at the tournament.

Belgium playmaker Kevin De Bruyne has advised team mate Eden Hazard to remain calm as he expects the Chelsea winger to be targeted aggressively by the opposition at the World Cup.

The 20-year old, who scored 13 goals for Manchester United in all competitions last season, will be hopeful of a starting spot in Southgate's team after impressing in the warm-up games, including a long-range goal against Costa Rica.

'I hope Brazil can win. It's a long time since 2002, and I think it's time'

Argentine referee Nestor Pitana will take charge of Thursday's opening World Cup match between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia in Moscow, FIFA said on Tuesday.

Dries Mertens and Michy Batshuayi were also on target for Belgium while Eden Hazard impressed with creativity and speed for the hosts, who start their World Cup campaign on Monday against Panama in Sochi.

Brazil scored three superbly-taken goals, including a stunning Neymar effort, to beat feisty Austria 3-0 in sweltering conditions on Sunday and put the finishing touches to their impressive World Cup preparation.

'So, clearly, getting out of the group and winning a knockout game would be a real sign of progress. And if you win one, you win more'

World champions Germany survived a late scare to see off Saudi Arabia 2-1 on Friday and claim a first victory this year, putting a five-game winless run behind them as they finalised their World Cup preparations.