Brazil World Cup 2018 preview: Complete squad, TV and stream schedule, players to watch

The 2018 World Cup kicks off on June 14 as host Russia takes on Saudi Arabia. CBS Sports will have you covered for each game, all the important news and more, as well as profiles of all of the teams.
Brazil is counting on a healthy Neymar to lead the way in Russia at the 2018 World Cup. The superstar attacker should be well rested after his midseason injury, and he'll be the main focal point in attack in a loaded Brazil squad that has everything needed to win the cup.

Brazil is one of the big favorites to win the tournament. Getty Images

Competition history

World Cup appearances: 21
Best finish: Champions (5X)
Last World Cup: 2014

Group E

		GP	W	D	L	GD	PTS
	Brazil	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Switzerland	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Costa Rica	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Serbia	0	0	0	0	0	0

Matches

June 17 - vs. Switzerland at 2 p.m. ET on FS1
June 22 - Costa Rica at 8 a.m. ET on FS1
June 27 - vs. Serbia at 2 p.m. ET on Fox

LIVE STREAMING LINK 1

Roster

Goalkeepers: Alisson (Roma), Ederson (Manchester City), Cassio (Corinthians).
Defenders: Miranda (Inter Milan), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Thiago Silva (Paris Saint-Germain), Geromel (Gremio), Danilo (Manchester City), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Fagner (Corinthians).

Midfielders: Casemiro (Real Madrid), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Paulinho (Barcelona), Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan), Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona), Willian (Chelsea), Fred (Shakhtar Donetsk).
Forwards: Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City), Douglas Costa (Juventus), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Taison (Shakhtar Donetsk).

Best Player

Neymar. He's one of the top five players on the planet, but how healthy will he be? He missed nearly half of the season with Paris Saint-Germain after picking up a foot fracture and has been recovering ever since. He's expected to be ready to go, but if he isn't 100 percent, it's tough envisioning this team being good enough to win. The pieces around him are great, but with Neymar playing well this may be the best team in the world. Neymar is clinical, creative and will have to deliver for Brazil to leave Russia with the crown. 

Player to watch

Roberto Firmino. The Liverpool man has really taken off since arriving from Hoffenheim. After 11 goals and then 12 goals in his first two seasons at Anfield, he's got 27 on the season and has been brilliant. He is of equal quality when it comes to setting up his teammates as well, and if he is in attack with Neymar and Gabriel Jesus, watch out.

Outlook

Brazil is probably the favorite to win alongside Germany. This team has quality everywhere and it's hard to find a weakspot. Losing Dani Alves hurts, but Tite has the options to replace him, and it may just make the team a bit more defensive, which isn't a bad thing. Marcelo will get forward, Philippe Coutinho is coming off a nice half-season with Barca and the five-time champs may just add their sixth star come July.