Sharpshooter Neymar: Brazil's captain marvel

A resurgent Brazil is determined to bury the memory of last year's traumatic World Cup campaign as it prepares to regain its crown as the king of South American soccer at the Copa America.

Brazil's challenge at the World Cup on home soil was obliterated in a 7-1 semifinal mauling by eventual champion Germany, a result that was compared to the host's infamous defeat to Uruguay in the climax of the 1950 tournament.

An emphatic 3-0 loss to the Netherlands in the third-place playoff only added to the mood of disarray surrounding Brazil as the world's most successful soccer nation came to terms with its early exit.