Just two and a half hours after the next painful knockout Neymar left the place of shame with his “bewitched generation”. When the last tear dried, the Brazilian superstar stepped out of the locker room at the Ar-Rayyan World Cup stadium and declined to announce whether she would once again don the record world champion’s yellow jersey. “To be honest: I don’t know,” replied the 30-year-old, who had experienced his greatest happiness and deepest disappointment within minutes of the devastating quarter-final defeat by Croatia.
“It’s hard to process everything that happened. It feels like a nightmare,” admitted Neymar, “I can’t believe what happened. This defeat will hurt for a long time.” Now he wants to “go home”, “moan and suffer.” Only then does he want to think about his future in the Seleção: “I don’t want to say anything in the heat of the moment. I’m not closing the doors, I haven’t said 100% that I will be back.”
Péle advises Neymar to continue playing for Brazil
If he asked his idol Pele for advice, the main thing he heard was an invitation to continue. After the tragic 4-2 on penalties, the Brazilian football legend spoke encouraging words on Instagram. “Your legacy is far from over. Keep inspiring us!” said the 82-year-old as he congratulated Neymar on his historic extra-time goal.
With his 77th international goal, the Paris St. Germain striker equaled Pelé’s record for goals in the Seleção: “My record was set almost 50 years ago and no one has been able to match it until today. You did it boy.”
The sixth world title remains unattainable
The 1-0, which Neymar had celebrated in a typical Pelé pose, was not enough for the semifinals. After a late equalizer from Croatia’s only shot on goal, a deflected effort from Bruno Petkovic, ‘Hexa’s dream’ of a sixth world title was shattered as young star Rodrygo and centre-back Marquinhos missed penalties . Neymar, intended as the fifth shooter, had no chance.
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“Neymar’s bewitched generation was left empty-handed. The sixth star seems unattainable”, summed up the newspaper “Folha de São Paulo”. And “Zero Hora” lamented: “A blow to the soul. The film, in been going on since 2006, it repeats itself again”. Brazil have been chasing the title in vain since beating Germany in the final in 2002, and the Seleção also lost their sixth knockout match to a European side in Qatar.
you may also be interested in: “Pray for the king”: the world of football fears for Pele
Either way, Tite’s era is over. The 61-year-old, in charge since 2016, confirmed the end of his tenure as national team coach, the second longest in the history of the record world champion. “We shouldn’t make a drama of it”, said the “Professor”: “I announced it some time ago. There are enough people who can replace me”.
Neymar feels “mentally destroyed” after the World Cup
The day after, superstar Neymar reacted to the end of the World Cup with drastic words. “I’m psychologically destroyed, that was definitely the defeat that hurt me the most,” the 30-year-old wrote on Instagram on Saturday. “Unfortunately, this is going to hurt for a long time.”
He didn’t go any further in his open future. “We fought until the end and I can say I’m proud of my teammates, commitment and dedication were not lacking”, he continued. “This group would have deserved it, we would have deserved it, BRAZIL would have deserved it… But that was not GOD’s will!” (sid/nswz)
