By Rohith Nair
MIAMI, June 24 (Reuters) - Brazil advanced to the knockout stages of the World Cup in style after Vinicius Jr netted twice in a 3-0 win over Scotland in their final Group C match on Wednesday while Neymar also made his first appearance in a Brazil shirt in three years.
The victory came at a full house in Miami Stadium where 64,478 fans watched Carlo Ancelotti's side top the group with seven points while Morocco finished second with a 4-2 win over Haiti.
Vinicius has scored in every game
so far and the 25-year-old has four goals in the tournament to find himself in elite company, going level with Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland while he sits one goal behind Lionel Messi.
Scotland boss Steve Clarke said he expected Brazil to attack from the outset and the South Americans needed seven minutes to go 1-0 up when Scott McKenna failed to clear the ball, allowing Rayan to nick it and find Vinicius unmarked.
As goalkeeper Angus Gunn scrambled to stop him, the Real Madrid forward simply took one touch to move the ball past him and tap it into an empty net as the fans in yellow erupted.
Brazil nearly made it 2-0 just before the first hydration break when Vinicius nicked the ball off Jack Hendry to score, but Scotland earned a reprieve after a VAR check and the goal was overturned by the referee for a foul by the Brazilian.
That remained the theme in the first half, with Brazil being more combative to win the ball back while Scotland failed to capitalise on set-pieces -- the only time they had opportunities to score -- as they finished the half with no shots on target.
Brazil's second goal was a dagger to Scotland's hearts on the stroke of halftime when once again they won the ball high up the pitch and Bruno Guimaraes crossed the ball to the far post, where a grateful Vinicius headed home his second.
In the second half, Brazil pressed for a third goal and it came with another scything move through the midfield as Guimaraes grabbed his second assist, dancing into the box before setting up Matheus Cunha for his third goal of the tournament.
But the biggest cheer of the night was reserved for Neymar as Ancelotti brought the 34-year-old on for his first appearance in a Brazil shirt since October 2023.
Scotland had little to show in attack and Alisson remained a rock in goal, denying them one last chance in the dying minutes as Brazil kept a clean sheet.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Miami;Editing by Christian Radnedge)
