Brazil’s franchise player and jogo bonito ambassador, Neymar Jr., has done it again in Copa América.
And no, I’m not talking about getting a 3BallMTY style haircut.
Or a fashion emergency intervention by the world famous haute couture advisor Dani Alves.
I’m talking about the crappy childish attitude Barcelona’s golden boy has been displaying for the last few months.
Nobody can deny that Neymar is one of the most talented players in the world. It doesn’t matter whether you like him; anyone who has ever kicked a ball should recognize this guy as a gênio. This season he won everything he could with Barca, even in the midst of a judicial process regarding the lack of transparency in his transfer last year.
But despite his beautiful playing style and marketing wisdom, the fact is that the skillful Brazilian number 10 has collected more enemies than friends so far.
For example, let’s ask Aleti’s Sisters of Charity what they think about Ney’s charming demeanor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmoTDmWPiGI
Or, how about this unfortunate lambretta at the last Copa del Rey final?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foEs86ytXH0
Luis Enrique’s boys were overpowering a humble but fiery Athletic Club when Ney Jr. decided it was about time to subdue the Lions with a cocky flick. As you might imagine, The Basques didn’t react quite the way good ol’ Neymar expected.
Indeed, the Verde-Amarela captain hasn’t been a good example of fair play lately.
After Colombia’s impressive 1-0 victory last night, Neymar started a massive melee on the pitch. First, he kicked a ball at the ecstatic Pablo Armero while he was celebrating, and then he tried head-butt goal-scorer Jeison Murillo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMiLqF6M_k4
The result: a red card for both Neymar and Carlos Bacca, the friendly pusher.
If Brazil still wants to win something this Copa América they’d better start making plans for how to replace Neymar. He has been provisionally suspended of El Canarinho’s final group clash against Venezuela for a second yellow card booking, and might face a tougher sanction after yesterday’s pitiful behavior.