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SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Neymar showed why he is carrying Brazils hopes at the World Cup, scoring twice on Thursday to help the underwhelming hosts escape a disappointing start to the tournament. Carl Davis Black Jersey . With Brazil struggling and down a goal against a spirited Croatian team, Neymar came through to lead his team to a 3-1 win in the opening match, scoring once in each half. The killer goal to make the score 2-1 was a hotly contested penalty awarded by Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura. "Things werent going well," he said. "The first match is always difficult, we were anxious, we were nervous. Im glad I was able to get the goals we needed at the time we needed them." "He is a special player and we know that," Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. "And he needs to know that we know that." Brazil got off to a slow start in its home tournament. Defender Marcelo found his own net while trying to clear a low cross by Ivica Olic in the 11th minute, stunning the crowd of more than 62,100 packing the Itaquerao Stadium. But Neymar equalized in the 29th, firing a perfectly placed low shot that went in off the post. He said he didnt hit the ball perfectly, "but it went in, its all that matters." "Its important to start these tournaments on the right foot, with a victory," said Neymar. "Im happy that I got to score, but the entire team deserves credit. We maintained our calm and showed we could battle back." The game turned on a controversial penalty awarded by Nishimura in the second half after striker Fred went down inside the area under minimal contact from defender Dejan Lovren. Neymar scored from the spot in the 71st minute, getting his 33rd goal with Brazil. Croatia goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa nearly saved Neymars shot, but it was struck hard enough to deflect into the net. The Croatians were furious. "If that was a penalty, we should be playing basketball. Those kinds of fouls are penalized there," Croatia coach Niko Kovac said. "That is shameful, this is not a World Cup referee. He had one kind of criteria for them and another for us. The rules were not the same," Kovac said. As Croatia searched desperately for an equalizer, Oscar added to the lead in the first minute of injury time with a toe poke from just outside the penalty area. A draw would have been a huge disappointment for Brazil, which had won its opening match the last eight times and is overwhelming favourite to win the competition. "The team didnt give up," Brazil defender David Luiz said "We knew it would be hard but we played well and got that first goal and then the victory." The tournament finally got underway as planned after months of talk about the preparation problems that plagued Brazil since it was picked as host seven years ago. The troubled Itaquerao, which wasnt fully finished for the opener, held up without major setbacks to fans or the match itself, although part of the lights atop the pitch went out a few times for brief periods in the first half. ------ Lineups: Brazil: Julio Cesar, Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Marcelo, Luiz Gustavo, Paulinho (Hernanes, 63), Oscar, Neymar (Ramires, 8, Hulk (Bernard, 6, Fred. Croatia: Stipe Pletikosa, Sime Vrsaljko, Darijo Srna, Dejan Lovren, Vedran Corluka, Ivan Rakitic, Nikica Jelavic (Ante Rebic, 7, Luka Modric, Ivan Perisic, Ivica Olic, Mateo Kovacic (Marcelo Brozovic, 61). Maxx Williams Limited Jersey Breshad Perriman White Jersey . The NBA began to issue punishments last season for flopping, the art of exaggerating contact to deceive referees into calling a foul, but only retroactively. If a player is determined to have flopped after a postgame review, he is given a warning for the first offence and a $5,000 fine for the second.SEOUL, South Korea - South Korean baseball team LG Twins have signed former major league infielder Jack Hannahan.South Korean news agency Yonhap said Tuesday that the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club signed the 34-year-old third baseman for $1 million.Hannahan, who bats left and throws right, made his major league debut with the Detroit Tigers in 2006 and played for four other cclubs, including last season with Cincinnati. Ray Lewis Elite Jersey. In 614 major league games, Hannahan batted .231 with 29 home runs and 175 runs batted in.The Twins have filled their foreign player quota for next year, with pitchers Henry Sosa and Lucas Harrell also on the team. KBO clubs can sign three players from overseas and at least one of them must be a position player. Cheap China Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China China NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China ' ' ' Cheap NFL China Jerseys