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Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – Brazilian midfielder for French club Lyon, Lucas Paqueta, defended his compatriot Neymar, who was criticized following his team, Paris Saint-Germain, was eliminated by Real Madrid from the Champions League final price round.
Paqueta said during the press conference on the sidelines of the last two rounds of South American qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, “Neymar is above all a good man and a great professional, with an incredible talent. He is without a doubt the best player in the Brazilian squad.”
“It is a great honor to have him with us. When Neymar is by my side, I feel stronger and so do my teammates.”
Paqueta, 24, booked his place in the starting line-up for the Seleção national team in recent months, and seemed to agree with Neymar inside the green rectangle, and this was evident during the celebration of the goals.
“Nye” arrived on Tuesday at the Teresopolis training center near Rio de Janeiro, to rejoin the national team, which had reserved his ticket to the football wedding in Qatar, following he missed the previous two rounds due to an ankle injury.
The Saint-Germain player with the number 10 hopes to compensate with the “samba dancers” his setbacks with the Parisian capital club following the humiliating exit once morest Real Madrid in the Champions League with a 1-3 loss in the back (Saint-Germain won 1-0 in the first leg), before becoming, with Argentine Lionel Messi, the victim of the boos from the fans of the Parc des Princes stadium, while hosting Bordeaux in the league, the day following the European elimination.
“After the elimination of Paris Saint-Germain, it is normal to see criticism in the press and among the fans, but he (Neymar) is coming back from injury. He is getting better and I am sure that he will play well for the national team,” Paqueta said.
The Brazilian national team has reserved its seat for the World Cup in Qatar since last November, by leading the joint group, and it will welcome Chile Thursday at the famous Maracana stadium in Rio. Before the five-time world champions travel to La Paz to face Bolivia in the final round of qualifying on the 29th.
© 2022 AFP
