The consequences of an early World Cup exit are being felt in Ghana, where sports minister Elvis Afriyie Ankrah and his deputy Joseph Yamin have been sacked by president John Mahama, Ghana Soccernet reports., external

Ghana's president has made the decision after a chaotic campaign in Brazil, during which their players boycotted training after not receiving their World Cup bonuses.

The players eventually received the money as Fifa threatened to intervene in the dispute.

Sammy Mexim:, external Germany. World class midfield, solid goalkeeper, good attacking prowess and work well together as a team.

John McEnerney:, external Sticking with Brazil. The nerves are gone, the team is confident plus that home support and pressure will carry them a long way!

Agustine Pimentel:, external The final will be Germany against Netherlands. The first time that a European team wins it on South American soil.

Keep your thoughts coming, please, on who you think will win the World Cup - and don't forget to tell us why.

Image source, Getty Images

But even if Neymar looks relaxed, Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari admits his players are becoming "more afraid" as they prepare to face Chile.

"It is normal for us to be anxious, especially now in the knockout stage where we cannot lose," he says.

"We become more afraid, more nervous. It is normal. Not because it is in Brazil, but because it is a World Cup."

Image source, @neymarjr

The pressure might be building on Brazil's players ahead of tonight's last-16 clash with Chile but it doesn't appear to be affecting Neymar. The 22-year-old forward looks relaxed after tweeting a picture of himself planting a kiss on little sister Rafaella.

Robbie Savage
BBC Sport

Image source, @RobbieSavage8

And what of Pele, arguably the player most closely associated with that iconic Brazil shirt?

Well, he's been meeting our very own Robbie Savage - who has taken in good spirit some recent Twitter mockery about a medal collection that doesn't quite match up to fellow BBC pundits such as Clarence Seedorf and Thierry Henry.

Savage tweets:, external "I asked Pele - has he ever heard of the Worthington Cup?"

In case you were not aware, Savage won the League Cup with Leicester City in 2000. Pele? Never got anywhere near it.

Ben Smith
BBC Sport

Image source, PA

"The Brazil shirt is a familiar sight the world over, but the story of how it came to be designed - after a shocking defeat - is much less well-known.

"They played in all-white until a watershed 2-1 defeat by Uruguay on home soil in the final match of the 1950 World Cup. The recriminations were fierce and far-reaching, and the team colours were not immune.

"In 1953, a competition was launched by a newspaper, Correio da Manha, to design a new kit. The rules were set, the new strip must use the four colours of the Brazil flag: yellow, blue, green and white. The winning design would be worn at the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland.

"Aldyr Garcia Schlee, an 18-year-old newspaper illustrator, came up with the new strip, which was worn for the first time in March 1954.

"Before Brazil wore yellow, they failed to win a World Cup. Since 1953, they have won the trophy a record five times. The question now is - can they make it six?"

Jon:, external France. Good goalkeeper, solid defence, attacking flair, a world class striker in form & depth in the squad. No expectations.

Martin McHugh:, external Chile...'cause Rachel Riley says so! Good 'nuff.

Scullion:, external Chile have looked organised and a big threat so far - very underrated as they aren't one of the fashionable teams.

Don't forget, we want your favourites to win the World Cup - and a reason.

"The problem with England is not the manager or the players, although they didn't fulfil their potential in Brazil. The main problem is the structure of the season and the way the domestic game is set up with club football taking precedent over international football.

"FA chairman Greg Dyke has talked about abolishing FA Cup replays to create time for a mid-season break and I have always been in favour of that as the England players are not as fresh as we would like them to be going into major tournaments.

Image source, AP

"Roy Hodgson picked the players most people would have done, but we disappointed at the full-back positions and didn't defend down our flanks too well. Our best player, without a doubt, was Daniel Sturridge, but even he missed opportunities you would expect him to convert."

BBC commentator John Motson, who has covered 10 World Cups, is giving his thoughts on the 2014 competition.

Image source, Getty Images

We have a special guest on World Cup Sportsday today - BBC football commentary legend John Motson.

Motty, who covered his first World Cup for BBC TV way back in 1974, will be giving us some of his thoughts on Brazil 2014 throughout the day.

Image source, Getty Images

Hosts Brazil go into Saturday's first match of the last 16 against Chile as the bookmakers' 3-1 favourites in the UK, but do they deserve to be?

The Netherlands are more than twice the price, while Chile are ninth favourites at 33-1.

Here's a summary of the general prices: 3-1 Brazil; 4-1 Germany, Argentina; 8-1 Netherlands, France; 20-1 Colombia, Belgium, 33-1 Mexico, Chile, 40 Uruguay; 50-1 Costa Rica, 80-1 USA; 100-1 Greece, Switzerland; 200-1 Nigeria; 300-1 Algeria.

We want to know: Who are your favourites for the World Cup - and why? Don't just give us a name - we know you can do better than that. We want a reason as well, please.

#bbcworldcup, external on Twitter, 81111 on text and the BBC Sport Facebook page., external

Just in case you need reminding (or have somehow managed to mislay your World Cup wallchart), here is how the last 16 pans out:

Brazil v Chile - Saturday, 28 June

Colombia v Uruguay - Saturday, 28 June

France v Nigeria - Monday, 30 June

Germany v Algeria - Monday, 30 June

Netherlands v Mexico - Sunday, 29 June

Costa Rica v Greece - Sunday, 29 June

Argentina v Switzerland - Tuesday, 1 July

Belgium v USA - Tuesday, 1 July

Pick your favourite team, and plot their route to the final by using the BBC Sport website fixtures planner.

Image source, Getty Images

Fifa general secretary Jerome Valcke says Suarez should seek help during his suspension.

"He should go for treatment," Valcke said. "It's definitely wrong. The first time, it's an incident. More than once, it is not.

"That is why the sanction has to be exemplary.

"It was seen by hundreds of millions of people. It is not what you want your kids, who are playing football around the world, to see at a World Cup."

Phil McNulty
BBC chief football writer in Brazil

"Oscar Tabarez played to the gallery in a dramatic 12-minute monologue at the Maracana.

"Tabarez announced he would take no questions and went on, uninterrupted, to outline the injustice he and the whole of Uruguay feels has been inflicted on Luis Suarez."

McNulty adds: "He concluded his speech with a call to arms for his players to use the emotions stirred by the Suarez affair to inspire them to victory against Colombia on Saturday.

"Tabarez then rose and left the room to loud applause from admiring Uruguayan journalists - an ovation not joined by those of us in the English media."

Image source, Getty Images

Uruguay boss Tabarez is so angry at what he calls the "excessive severity" of Suarez's punishment, that he has resigned from two Fifa posts in protest.

The 67-year-old says he will leave his roles on Fifa's technical study group and strategic committee.

"It isn't wise to be in an organisation with those who exerted pressure to promote this decision," he said.

Image source, Getty Images

Without Suarez, Uruguay face Colombia in Rio De Janeiro tonight, in the second of the day's two last-16 matches.

And at a news conference ahead of the game, Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez made clear who he felt was to blame for the Suarez controversy - the English-speaking media.

"(It is) a decision which, obviously, is much more focused on the opinions of the media - the media who immediately drew their conclusions at the (Italy) game - the journalists who concentrated solely on that topic at the post-match press conference," Tabarez said.

"I don't know what their nationality was, but they all spoke English. They concentrated on the history of Luis because of things that happened in the past."

Image source, Getty Images

There's been one other high-profile departure from this World Cup. It is four days since Luis Suarez bit Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini, and two days since the Uruguay striker received a four-month worldwide ban, but the story shows no sign of going away quietly.

With the ban ending his World Cup, Suarez has returned to Uruguay, and has been pictured at his mother's home in Lagomar, near Montevideo, with his children Benjamin and Delfina.

Image source, Getty Images

In addition to our live match coverage, there are a couple of BBC programmes to let those of you in the UK know about this morning.

For younger viewers, MOTD Kickabout brings all the fun of the tournament to your screens from 08:00 BST on BBC Two.

Stay with BBC Two from 09:00 BST for the official Fifa film of the 1994 World Cup; featuring the triumph of Brazil, the brilliance of Baggio, the tragedy of Escobar and the downfall of Maradona,

Image source, Getty Images

While the Europeans have taken a big hit at this World Cup, the South Americans have largely prospered - and it is they who get the last 16 under way today.

Hosts Brazil - Neymar and all - qualified as Group A winners despite a couple of wobbles, and are up first when they face Chile in Belo Horizonte at 17:00 BST. Viewers in the UK can watch the match on BBC One or listen on BBC Radio 5 live.

Then at 21:00 BST, it's off to Rio de Janeiro for Colombia against Uruguay - a match that has been overshadowed in its build-up by the behaviour of one player - of which more in a moment. That game is live on BBC Radio 5 live in the UK.

And wherever you are in the world, you can follow live text commentarry of both matches right here on the BBC Sport website.

Image source, Getty Images

But it is not just England who might have hoped to do better in Brazil. Portugal are out. Italy are out. Even the world champions Spain are out.

We started with 32 teams. We are down to 16. Over the next four days, they will be whittled down to eight. There is no margin for error now.

Image source, Getty Images

There was no glorious exit for England this time, though. Roy Hodgson's men have returned home after completing their campaign with a sleepy goalless draw against Costa Rica on a Tuesday afternoon in Belo Horizonte. It's almost - almost - enough to make the average English football fan yearn for a penalty shoot-out defeat against Germany.