Brazil beat North Korea 2-1 on Tuesday but struggled during most of the match and escaped with a victory after second-half goals by Maicon and Elano.
The North Koreans are the lowest-ranked team of the tournament and Brazil will need more against Ivory Coast and Portugal, which drew their group game 0-0.
Brazil is in first place in the group and a win against the Ivory Coast on Sunday at Soccer City will virtually secure the five-time champions in the second round.
“We will have to play better in the second match, we know it's going to be a lot harder,” Brazil striker Robinho said. “We know that Ivory Coast has a very good team.” Brazil blamed its struggles against North Korea on anxiety inherent to the opening match and because of the overtly defensive setup of the Asians.
Robinho was one of the few Brazilian attackers who threatened North Korea's defense with his skills and quick moves. Kaka, coming off a season plagued by injures, seemed unfit and was not a factor, while forward Luis Fabiano struggled and got only one shot on goal.
“The first match is always difficult,” Kaka said. “But the victory gives us confidence for the next matches and that's important.” The players who started against North Korea worked on physical conditioning at the team's hotel on Wednesday, while the reserves underwent a light training session in the afternoon.
Argentina coach Diego Maradona was among those unimpressed by Brazil's first outing, but expected sharp improvement.
“Brazil played a relaxed game yesterday, too relaxed,” Maradona said. “Korea never challenged them. For (goalkeeper) Julio Cesar, it would have been the same to shower or not after the game. Brazil is Brazil ... and Dunga has done a good job.” The Brazilian confederation said Wednesday that Jong Tae Se, North Korea's leading scorer, went to Brazil's changing room after the match to exchange jerseys with Kaka. Jong, who speaks Portuguese and English, had already been given Robinho's jersey after the match.
