Holder for the first time since his return from injury, the Brazilian lived an evening rich in emotions.
Coming into play at the end of the match against Real Madrid, Neymar (30) was established for the first time since his injury against Saint-Etienne. With a view to the round of 16 return to the Bernabéu, observers were therefore expecting a strong signal from the Brazilian. Overall, the Parisian number 10 made an interesting copy. And physically, he knew how to be hard-hitting against the very compact 5-4-1 of the FCN. But with Neymar, everything is never perfect.
At the start of the match, the Auriverde international was clearly marked closely, in particular by a hard Jean-Charles Castelletto on the man, but legit according to the referee. Not enough to get the South American, used to this preferential treatment in Ligue 1, out of his match. Moreover, if Juan Bernat (3rd), Lionel Messi (8th) and Kylian Mbappé (19th, 54th), the former Blaugrana could have had four assists and the meeting would have had a completely different flavor. An interesting activity which was still rewarded in the 47th minute with a goal. The one who could revive Paris…
Inspired, goal-scoring and physically ready, but…
Physically present and inspired with his teammates, Neymar has had darker sides, however. Undoubtedly annoyed by the squrréaliste scenario of the match, but also by the treatment of Nantes, the Brazilian has once again fallen into his faults by exaggerating the faults suffered. In the 52nd minute, the Parisian number 10 also remained on the ground for a while after regular contact, while his team tried to find the solution. Just before, he had just taken a yellow card for clearing the ball in anger.
In the mixed zone, Leonardo took his defense. “There are so many fouls on our players. But he says no, no, it’s Neymar, it’s Mbappé, I’m not whistling! It’s Messi, I don’t whistle, it’s Paris Saint-Germain, I don’t whistle! And if the Brazilian’s annoyance can sometimes be understood, his grossly missed penalty in the 59th minute (which would have allowed PSG to return to 3-2 fairly quickly) cost a lot. Released under the whistles of Beaujoire in the 74th, Neymar still left us hungry.
