Brazil barely got through what will surely be their only competitive match of the group stage 1-0 against a more than decent Croatian side.

It was a surprisingly even match just about the whole way through. Croatia’s defense held except for one brief moment before half-time and Kaka took advantage and won the game with a great strike. Both teams go away fairly pleased, and comfortable in the knowledge that they’re both advancing.

As a fan, this would have been the match to go to of the first round so far. The atmosphere seemed amazing. Both sets of supporters brought the game to life.

Hopefully Ronaldo plays himself into match fitness. They don’t really even need him, but he’s clearly been enjoying the fruits of the land more than soccer lately. All the rumors look to be very true. He’s still a good player, but he’s not great anymore–unless you’re speaking of size.

Ronaldinho is though. So is Kaka, Cafu… The list is long and well known. They’ll do enough, often enough to beat anyone. They may not be invincible, but if they lose it’ll still seem like a fluke.

That said, Croatia could have easily beaten them today. I was very impressed with their performance. Prso, Kranjcar, Srna all looked great, and the defense was solid against the best offense in the world. I wouldn’t want to play either one of these teams in the later rounds.