Brazil scored twice in stoppage time to move top of Group E but Neymar, who got involved in discussions with the referee and was awarded a penalty that was rescinded by the video assistant referee (VAR), looked emotionally frail throughout, often gesticulating and crashing to the ground when tackled.

Philippe Coutinho broke the deadlock a minute into time added on before Neymar doubled the lead with almost the final kick of the game.

Tite said his Neymar's post-game reaction could be down to the huge pressure of leading the five-times world champions.

"The joy, the satisfaction, and the pride of representing the Brazilian national team is a lot," Tite told reporters.

"He has the responsibility, the joy, the pressure and the courage to show it. We each show it in our own way."

"He was three-and-a-half months out (with injury) and he played the full match."

Neymar was sidelined by a foot injury which kept the Paris Saint-Germain player on the sidelines between February and June.

"He is a human being, he needs time to reach his high standards again but before that there is a team that needs to be strong and not dependent on him. Is he going to be back to his best? Yes, he is going to be back to his best," Tite said.

Neymar posted on Instagram moments after Tite spoke.

"The tears were of joy, of overcoming difficulties, of commitment and will to win," he wrote.

"Nothing in my life was ever easy and that's not going to change now. The dream continues, no not the dream, the OBJECTIVE."

Tite said Brazil should have been awarded the penalty that was chalked off by the VAR.

"When he (Neymar) draws the foul he is in front of goal," Tite said. "It is clear, it is not open to interpretation, the touch robs him of the possibility of him finishing. To me it is a penalty.

"We don't need referees to win the game, we just want them to be fair. They should be fair for everyone.

"We don't want help, Brazil doesn't need help."

The result took the five-times world champions to four points from two games while Costa Rica have been eliminated.

"I don't know what more we could have done," Ticos coach Oscar Ramirez said.

"Considering what I had at my disposal and what they had, it was a good effort. They are one of the best teams in the world."

"My players made a huge effort, they defended well and whenever we had the chance to attack their goal they did.

"But unfortunately, in the end, we weren't able to finish."

Australian Associated Press