Neymar has strongly refuted claims of diving from Diego Lugano after Brazil’s 2-1 victory over Uruguay on Wednesday.
The Selecao
recorded a 2-1 victory over their South American rivals in the
semi-finals of the Confederations Cup thanks to goals from Fred and
Paulinho, either side of an Edinson Cavani strike, to reach the final of
the competition for a third consecutive time.
But the Barcelona forward was
unhappy with comments made by Uruguay defender Lugano prior to the game
after he claimed that the former Santos player was guilty of diving.
"He
who has a mouth speaks what he wants. This will not hurt me. What
matters to me most is to help my team-mates and the team win," he told
reporters.
The 21-year-old then acknowledged just how close the
contest was, with nerves appearing to get the better of Brazil in the
early stages of the game in front of an expectant Belo Horizonte crowd.
“It
was typical of a semi-final game. We managed to control the game. We
knew it would be hard but we got the win and that was the most important
thing," he added.
Brazil striker Fred was also in high spirits after his side’s victory and defended Neymar over accusations of simulation.
"The
Uruguayans talked a lot before the game, some [Lugano] attacked Neymar.
We beat them on the pitch, and that's our answer," he told reporters
after the match.
“Criticism? As I always say, I only respond on the pitch, but the crowd today was great with me. It was amazing.”
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