PSG forward Neymar slams the recent comments of the
Brazilian football legend Pele while saying he ‘does not approve’ his
criticism. Former world champion Pele became quite vocal during the FIFA World
Cup last year and said that Neymar should focus on playing football rather than
diving so frequently on the ground.
Several football pundits besides Pele also condemned the repeated diving of Neymar even in cases of minimal contacts during the last World Cup in Russia. Although the PSG star helped his nation to secure their place in the quarterfinals, it seems his countrymen are now quite happy with his attitude on the ground.
While talking about the criticism of the Brazilian legend,
Neymar said “Pelé’s criticisms? I’ve found them interesting,” and added “As
soon as you don’t win, criticisms come. I’ve never been acting during the World
Cup, I’ve just been subject to fouls.” He then added “Today people talk a lot
about that because it’s Neymar and everything is amplified. I respect Pelé’s
criticisms but I don’t approve them.”
Pele recently said “It’s difficult to defend Neymar for all the things he does besides playing football. I spoke with him and reminded him of his ability,” and added, “He was unlucky because Brazil did not win the World Cup and he was singled out.” The legend then also said “I’ve been with him in Europe twice. We talked and I explained: ‘The God of football gave you the gift. What you do complicates it’.”
In his recent interview with Canal, Neymar also gave his own opinion about his transfer rumor and said “Rumours of me leaving? There have been rumors like that since I’ve become a pro. But there’s nothing concrete. As soon as there is something certain, I’ll talk about it and I’ll assume it, be sure of that.”
He said “I want to win everything, especially the Champions
League, since it’s every player’s dream,” and then added “United will be a good
game for us and for people who like football. What do we lack in order to win
the Champions League? You have to grow in this competition, everyone must
attack and defend well. We were good defensively in the first games, we’re
getting better and better.”