The sadness of the World Cup reaching close to its end is seeping in. There are only 8 games left and we will then have a new world champion in around 9 days’ time. This World Cup has given us everything. From surprise results leading to surprise eliminations, from epic moments of Diego Maradona to the nerve-wracking end to the Japan-Belgium game. However, apart from the good and the bad, there has been the ugly – and Neymar’s theatrics stand above the rest of the lot.
Shattered ankle against Mexico
And this is the latest of the lot. While Brazil were battling Mexico in a bid to reach the quarter-final of the tournament, Neymar was lying on the sidelines when Miguel Layun ran to him to fetch the ball.
As it turned out, Layun mildly stepped on Neymar’s right ankle and the Brazilian acted as though someone had run a tank over it. He cried and cried while jumping around in agony, something that totally angered former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel.
“It’s annoying to watch, the way he tries to force cards. It seemed like he was dying, I thought he’d be put on a stretcher, then in an ambulance and never seen again,” said the former Denmark ‘keeper.
Schmeichel was triggered by the fact that he was awarded the man of the match award for his goal and assist – something that will reflect badly on the kids watching the game.
Gunshot against Uruguay
This was way back in 2013 when Neymar was playing for Brazil in the Confederations Cup. He was yet to make a move to Barcelona at the time but was already a star in Brazil.
When Walter Gargano was attempting to shield the ball from the forward, Neymar jumped off the grass like a bullet while holding his left cheek all the while.
The most astounding part about this is that he definitely was hurt more by the impact of his body hitting the ground than by Gargano’s ‘touch’.
Rolling on the grass
This became the most hilarious moment of the World Cup. Although play-acting should never be encouraged by labeling it hilarious, one just can’t stop laughing after watching not only the way Neymar rolled on the floor but also the subsequent internet memes that were created out of it.
When Adem Ljajic made the mistake of putting a sliding tackle on Neymar, he got most of the man and little of the ball. Neymar had to ensure that the Serbian got punished for his audacity.
So he rolled and rolled around on the grass. The way he rolled over the grass, it felt as though it wouldn’t need any mowing for the next two decades or so. The memes that were made after that were perhaps the best things about his performance in that match.