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But their investment soon turn
somewhat sour. The past twoyea
have seen him out of action forpr
longed periods with injuries and
off-the-field behaviour has riledn
only fans but business associa
and his teammates too.
At training sessionsh
used his talents tohumil-
iate his teammates
and he’s been
known to lash out
at younger col-
leagues when
they turn the
tables on him.
One of his PSG
teammates was
privately asked by
a journalist what
the Brazilian is like.
“A total prick,” wasthe
quick response.
On the business side, his entourage is
described as “a nightmare” who make it
difficult for anyone to get close to him.
“Relationships entirely based on trust
evaporate because of the petulant be-
haviour of children,” one business source
told the newspaper.
“On the pitch there’s absolutely no
doubt about his talent,” journalist Miguel
Delaney wrote in The Independent.
“He’s probably the best after Lionel
Messi in terms of pure technical ability
and basic control of the ball. It was one
of the things that struck at last year’s
world cup. For all the dramatics around
Neymar and the theatrics he became
notorious for, he was electrifying when
he got on the ball.”
But it’s the theatrics that have really
stuck. At last year’s Fifa World Cup in
Russia he was regularly the meme of the
match thanks to his unforgettable flail-
ing and vigorous rolling around the pitch
when he deemed himself to have been
fouled.
A Swiss TV station tracked his total
time on the ground during the tourna-
ment – 14 minutes – while KFC paid
tribute to his histrionics with an ad
showing a player rolling off the pitch and
all the way to one of its fast-food joints.
The trouble with Neymar now is he
doesn’t get on the ball that often any-
more.
PSG failed to make the quarterfinals of
the Uefa Champions League in the past
two seasons and Neymar, after a bright
start, always seemed to be absent whenbiggamescamearound.
Although he was initially adored by Les
Parisiens fans, he’s been overtaken in the
popularity stakes by local player Kylian
Mbappé (20).
Off the pitch he’s been dogged by alle-
gations of behaviour that ranges fromd tocriminal. In April he was
pped with a three-match ban
erhitting a fan in the face after
G lost to Rennes in the Coupe de
ancefinal.
Neymar reacted angrily to the
anwho was filming and verbally
ading players as they walked
pthe stairs to collect their
nner-up medals. The fan plans
suethe player.
Thenthere were the rape allega-
ons,which ultimately went no-
here.A Brazilian judge recently
ccepted a recommendation
secutors to close the investiga-
tionasa result of insufficient evidence to
pursuea case.
Neymar always claimed the sex with
his rape accuser was consensual but the
publicity the matter churned up further
damaged his image.R
UMOURS that Real Madrid are
also contenders to take Ney-
mar into the fold intensified
when the footballer posted a
picture of himself on social
media with Zinedine Zidane,
Madrid’s manager.
“Neymar is not [in our squad], but un-
til 2 September anything can happen,”
Zizou said, referring to the date the
transfer window closes.
Some PSG supporters have already
washed their hands of the man who was
supposed to be their team’s star. At the
club’s opening Ligue 1 game of the
2019/20 season, where the squad defeat-
ed Nimes 3-0, fans were spotted waving
banners reading, “Neymar go away.”
The Red and Blues’ sporting director,
Leonardo Araújo, says Neymar could
leave if a deal can be struck.
“But to date, we don’t know if anyone
wants to buy him, or at what price,” he
told Le Parisien. “PSG wants to rely on
players who want to stay and build
something big.”
Where Neymar will end up is uncer-
tain but it seems likely he’ll be saying “au
revoir” to Paris.
But responses from fans about his
imminent departure have been almost
unanimous: “Good riddance. Let him go,”
is the general sentiment on social media.
“We have Mbappé.” S
SOURCES: 11V11.COM, CNN.COM, DAILYMAIL.CO.UK, DREAMTEAM-
FC, EXPRESS.CO.UK, FORBES.COM, GOAL.COM, INDEPENDENT.
CO.UK, METRO.CO.UK, NBC.COM, PLANETFOOTBALL.COM,
STANDARD.CO.UK, SPORTSKEEDA.COM, TELEGRAPH.CO.UK,
THEGUARDIAN.COM, THESUN.CO.UK, TRANSFERMARKT.CO.ZA,
TRIBUNA.COM‘He’s probably the best
after Lionel Messi’
y
Mbappé.ABOVE:Mbappé,
NeymarandMarcoVerratti
after Paris Saint-Germain won
the French Super Cup recently.
BELOW: Neymar and former Barce-
lonateammate Lionel Messi.ned
ars
ro-
his
not
tesbad
slap
afte
PSG
Fra
N
ma
go
up
ru
to
Th
tio
wh
ac
LELEFTFT::FaFannfafavovouurititeKyKlilian frompro’syou.co.za 29 AUGUST 2019 | (^89)