World Cup 2018 Standings: Predicting Friday's Scores, Results and Updated Table

Failure to beat Costa Rica on Friday could endanger Brazil's 2018 FIFA World Cup ambitions, and they need a quick response to their 1-1 opening draw against Switzerland if they are to top Group E.

The South Americans need to show more bite than they did against the Swiss, who face Serbia on Friday and will hope that surprise result against the Selecao can act as a springboard to the round of 16.

Meanwhile, Iceland will seek to follow up their 1-1 draw against Argentina in Group D with victory over Nigeria.

Despite being the smallest nation ever to qualify for a World Cup finals and making their tournament debut, Iceland sit 26 places above Nigeria in FIFA's rankings and will enter their second game as favourites.

Here, we preview Friday's World Cup schedule and take a look at how the group standings could look in its aftermath.

Friday's Schedule/Predictions

Brazil 3-1 Costa Rica, 1 p.m. BST/8 a.m. ET

Nigeria 0-1 Iceland, 4 p.m. BST/11 a.m. ET

Serbia 2-2 Switzerland, 7 p.m. BST/2 p.m. ET

Projected Group Standings (Goal Difference)

Group D

1. Croatia (a): 6 (+5)

2. Iceland: 4 (+1)

3. Argentina: 1 (-3)

4. Nigeria (e): 0 (-3)

Group E

1. Brazil: 4 (+2)

2. Serbia: 4 (+1)

3. Switzerland: 2 (0)

4. Costa Rica (e): 0 (-3)

*(a) denotes a team that has qualified for the next round. (e) denotes a team that's been eliminated from the tournament. Visit the official FIFA website for the full standings.

Brazil Back on Track, Iceland Keep Pressure High in Group D

Brazil will have Neymar among their ranks for the Costa Rica game after manager Tite confirmed the Paris Saint-Germain star would be part of an unchanged XI at the Saint Petersburg Stadium, per Sky Sports.

The first round of group-stage results served as something of a wake-up call for South American sides, as noted by ESPN presenter Maximiliano Bretos, one such surprise being the Selecao's 1-1 draw with Switzerland:

But Costa Rica don't possess the same talent on an individual level or as a team, and if Oscar Ramirez's men were deserved losers against Serbia, it's tough to imagine them surviving against a Brazil team motivated to get its first win.

The importance of Serbia's meeting with Switzerland also cannot be understated, and OddsShark analyst Rob Trites previewed what looks to be a decider on who will finish second in Group E:

It's a tough fixture to judge for Serbia, who will close their pool account against Brazil but must also get a result on Friday in order to gain the upper hand over the Swiss.

Vladimir Petkovic's Switzerland had a physical, exhausting encounter with Brazil on Sunday and can afford to risk more after already playing their trickiest group fixture, although it seems most likely the match against Serbia will end in a draw.

Also on Friday's agenda is a Group D meeting between Iceland and Nigeria, the two teams who will have been least fancied to advance from the pool before the competition started.

Iceland recently proved their status as one of the most likeable teams at the World Cup, too. They put their Group D rivalries to one side in support of Nigerian goalkeeper Carl Ikeme, who is fighting serious illness, per Marca (h/t The Independent):

The World Cup debutants don't match up to the Super Eagles in tournament experience, but Iceland have hit upon a "golden generation" of players in recent years.

What they lack in quantity they appear to make up for in quality and a united front under coach Heimir Hallgrimsson, and the more ragged Nigeria should provide Iceland with their maiden World Cup victory.