Neymar has hit back at criticism surrounding his appearance at a poker tournament while Santos were playing in the Copa Sudamericana, telling his detractors to “mind your own business” before responding emphatically on his return to action.
The controversy began after Neymar was left out of Santos’ travelling squad for their Copa Sudamericana play-off first leg against Universidad Central in Venezuela on Tuesday. While Santos went on to secure a commanding 4-1 victory, footage emerged showing their biggest star competing in the BSOP Winter poker tournament in São Paulo.
However, Neymar had not skipped the match in order to play poker. Santos head coach Cuca had decided to preserve the 34-year-old and keep him in Brazil as part of a carefully managed physical programme following his latest injury-disrupted spell.
Neymar trained normally at Santos’ CT Rei Pele earlier on Tuesday before heading to the poker event later in the day. He returned to the tournament on Wednesday, when Santos had given him and the players returning from Venezuela a day off.
That did little to stop the criticism. Neymar subsequently posted photographs from the tournament on Instagram with the caption, “Life is a joke”, before directly addressing the backlash in a video on social media.
“I worked in the morning, I didn’t go to the match, I returned to training. I was on a day off,” Neymar explained.
He then sarcastically questioned whether his critics would also object to him training before finishing with a blunt message: “Mind your own business.”
Cuca defends Neymar decision before star responds on pitch
Cuca had already made clear that leaving Neymar behind was a decision taken by Santos rather than the forward refusing to travel.
The Santos coach explained that Neymar needed additional physical work after spending time on the sidelines and said the demanding journey to Venezuela offered little benefit when the club were preparing for a congested run of fixtures.
“What advantage was there in bringing him here?” Cuca said after the Universidad Central victory, while confirming that Neymar had remained in Brazil to continue training.
The plan was always for Neymar to return against Chapecoense in the Brazilian Serie A on Saturday – and he did so in dramatic fashion.
Neymar scored twice as Santos drew 2-2 at Vila Belmiro, opening the scoring in the 35th minute before converting a late penalty to rescue a point after Chapecoense had turned the match around in the second half.
His first goal also produced a pointed response to the controversy that had followed him throughout the week. During his celebration, Neymar mimicked dealing playing cards, an apparent reference to the poker criticism. Television footage also appeared to show him directing another provocative message towards his detractors while performing the celebration.
The match marked Neymar’s return to Santos action following Brazil’s World Cup campaign and came after the club had spent several days carefully building up his fitness. His comeback was not entirely without consequence. Neymar also received his third yellow card of the Brazilian league season against Chapecoense, meaning he will be suspended when Santos face Athletico-PR on August 9.
For now, however, the poker controversy has produced a characteristically defiant response from Neymar – first through social media and then, with two goals and a card-dealing celebration, on the pitch.
