Brazil star Neymar admitted that he’s now willing to consider whether he deserved criticism for playacting during the World Cup in Russia last summer.
Neymar was expected to lead the Selecao to the semi-finals at the very least, but they came undone against Belgium in the quarter-finals.
Instead he made most of the headlines for the wrong reasons – diving and exaggerated reactions on the field.
Although there were accusations of playacting throughout the tournament, it peaked when the 27-year-old started to write in apparent agony after the faintest of touches from Miguel Layun during Brazil’s 2-0 victory over Mexico in the round of 16.
Fair or foul? 😳 pic.twitter.com/XMJUEzEctz
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 2, 2018
Neymar had always denied trying to deceive the referee – but is starting to reconsider after re-watching his World Cup antics.
“I started to see all of my pieces of play in the World Cup and I thought ‘could it be that I really am diving?’,” he admitted in an interview with Esporte Espetacular, as cited by Marca.
He also went on to talk about the criticism he received after Brazil’s elimination.
“I think there was an exaggerated blame placed on me,” said the PSG forward, who is currently recovering from a foot injury.
“But I knew to expect that, as it’s always been like this over the course of my career, no?
“I know that when Brazil loses, most of the weight will fall on my back.
“Fernandinho was another who was blamed in a way that I can’t understand.”
