Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar has mocked Argentina’s celebrations following their triumph in the Finalissima clash against Italy at Wembley.
Last summer, Lionel Messi played an inspirational role as his nation won the Copa America title – their first trophy since 1993. That title ensured their participation in the 2022 Finalissima on Wednesday night against Italy, the European champions, at Wembley. Messi was named Man of the Match in a glittering performance as Argentina cantered to a two-goal victory.
Messi’s PSG teammate Neymar starred for Brazil at last summer’s Copa America, which was held in his native nation, but was eventually a losing finalist but the Selecao lost to their arch-rivals in the showpiece. It was a painful match for Neymar, just as it was for all of his international teammates, although they did win the tournament two summers prior.
Neymar was less than impressed with Argentina’s celebrations after the match, with videos circulated on social media of the Argentine players chanting in their dressing room at Wembley.
"What happened, Brazil? Are you still waiting? What happened, Brazil? In the favelas they're all crying. The years go by, you remember the 50s Cup? They're all s***, they're afraid it will happen again.
"Because Messi has the crown. And the left leg with the magic that enchants you. To make it worse, remember Maradona? I know it hurts you, that it hurts you, but this Cup belongs to Argentina."
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Neymar hit back with the response on Instagram : "Did they win the World Cup?" Of course, Neymar is frieds not only with Messi but with Leandro Paredes and Angel di Maria, whom he has played alongside at club level for PSG.
A similar incident occurred earlier this season, when midfielder Paredes posted a photo of himself alongside Messi and Di Maria alongside a caption to accompany the photo: “in good company” – as they were pictured alongside the Copa America trophy.
Unsurprisingly, their club teammate and international rival Neymar responded to the post by swearing at the trio. Neymar showed that he was not really angry with his club teammates for posting the photo, by adding an emoji of a laughing face to his post.
While there is little sign of genuine friction between the players, the latest update suggested a more frayed situation with Argentina players openly mocking Brazil with the victory with Neymar hitting back and without any emojis to suggest he was joking.
