Tite Says Brazil Cannot Solely Rely on Neymar Ahead of Serbia World Cup Clash

Brazil manager Tite has called on the rest of the Brazil squad to make their mark at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, insisting the team cannot solely rely on star forward Neymar. 

The Selecao face Serbia on Wednesday in a crucial encounter, knowing a draw would be enough to secure their spot in the knockout stages of the last 16. However, Brazil struggled for long spells in their previous game against Costa Rica, before two late goals eventually gave them three points.

Ahead of the match, Tite has called on the Selecao to take some of the burden of responsibility off Neymar's shoulders, per the Press Association (h/t the MailOnline).

"There is an excessive responsibility (on Neymar) in terms of success and that is not the way to go, and the coach is not going to do that," he said. "Each one of us has our own responsibility. We should not place it all on his shoulders, the whole group will solve it. Can he do it? Of course he can, in some circumstances, yes."

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Neymar came into the tournament having played no competitive football since February, and according to Tite it will be "one more match" until we see the 26-year-old at his best.

It's been a mixed beginning to the tournament in Russia for the Paris Saint-Germain man. While he netted in the 97th minute to add the gloss to a win against Costa Rica, he's been closely monitored by opposition defences.

As noted by sports writer Paul Brown, Tite defended Neymar when asked about his temperament and the penalty decision that was overturned by VAR during the game against Costa Rica:

As we can see here, Neymar's record for the national team has been astonishing:

There has been a sense of this Brazil team being dependent on him since the previous World Cup in 2014. Arguably four years ago there was even more pressure on the then-Barcelona man to thrive on home soil.

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Neymar finds himself in an interesting position at the moment. There will be hope among Selecao supporters that his goal against Los Ticos will give him more confidence going into the showdown with Serbia.

Brazil haven't been dependent on the PSG star, though. As noted by Rafael Hernandez of Grup14.com, Philippe Coutinho has been more decisive so far:

Neymar has appeared distracted on the field and frustrated by some of the aggressive tactics deployed against him.

Now, with the serious section of the World Cup about to kick into gear, Tite will be hoping his star striker can refine his focus and find an edge in front of goal. However, as things stand, this Brazil side don't appear wholly reliant on Neymar to get them through games.