Paris Saint Germain suffered their second defeat in three outings after being beaten by Nice
Paris Saint Germain star Neymar reacted angrily when Amine Gouiri cheated on him in the Ligue 1 giants’ second defeat in three games at Nice on Saturday.
With the Champions League Round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid fast approaching, Mauricio Pochettino’s men lost 1-0 thanks to an 88th-minute winner from Andy Delort orchestrated by Christophe Galtier, who snatched the French league title from the Parisians when he led Lille last season.
PSG were missing top scorer Kylian Mbappe as Lionel Messi once again fired a blank in another unflattering display in which he failed to register a single shot and made just one key assist.
But one of the most talked about moments of the defeat came when Neymar, who himself is not in top form with a goal in his last seven games, took offense at Amine Gouiri’s showboating at the 96th minute, with footage of the incident seen almost a million times online in less than 24 hours.
Gouiri’s showboating in front of Neymar is the type of pettiness I can get behind https://t.co/oXTzu1mVyb
As the final whistle sounded and Nice took second place – 13 points behind PSG and one point above Marseille – Gouiri tried to pull off a rainbow.
The skill, which ends with the ball kicking over the head of the player who attempted it, angered the Brazilian striker and prompted him to shove the 22-year-old Frenchman.
The heat died down after a quick look as Neymar sulked off, but the world’s most expensive player’s reaction could be seen as hypocritical given his history of similar taunts.
After a rainbow flick against Leganes in a 5-1 win while at Barcelona, Michael Laudrup has slammed the Ballon d’Or contender for “provoking opposition” in September 2016.
“Pass the ball and move elsewhere” asked the Dane, who played for both Barcelona and Real Madrid in his prime. “At 4-0, you can’t party and provoke your opponents”.
Current Barca manager and club legend Xavi Hernandez was also unimpressed when Neymar pulled off the same trick in 2015 in a 3-1 Copa del Rey final win over Athletic Bilbao.
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‘It’s stupid’: Fans stunned as Lyon star Paqueta receives yellow card after ‘showboating’ (VIDEO)
“He should seriously think about how he acts [in the future] », the iconic midfielder told Sport.
“I understand people’s attitude towards his [rainbow flick] against Athletic Bilbao in the Copa [del Rey]. Some saw it as a lack of respect.
“These things in Brazil are accepted, but not so much [in Spain]. He should think about it because he is an amazing guy, a hard worker and humble.
“But he has this Brazilian trait that sees these things as part of the show. [In Spain]it looks like disrespect. »
Neymar was also booked in France for the act and offered his support to fellow Brazilian national team player Lucas Paqueta when he was shown a yellow card for showing his skills while playing for Lyon.
“It’s very sad this episode, taking a yellow because of a dribble”, Neymar said on social media, using the term “wheelbarrow” – the name of the film in Brazil – and the caller “a resource, no matter where or at what minute it is. »
“Last year, it happened to me. This year with Lucas Paqueta. Honestly, I don’t understand the reason.
“The famous “beautiful game” is coming to an end. Enjoy it while it lasts or fight for it to come back. »
Neymar has commented that Lucas Paquetá received a yellow card for trying to rainbow a player. It happened to Neymar himself in the 19/20 season.
Ahead of Wednesday’s trip to the Bernabeu, the under-fire Pochettino pointed out the obvious, saying his side were heading for a draw until Delort struck.
“The game was balanced, we controlled the game, even if we didn’t create many chances” said the Argentinian.
« [But] the adversary was able to respond with a few situations, in particular with transitions, and was effective at the end. Honestly, there’s not much to analyze about this encounter.
“It’s true that when you can’t win a game, you must at least not lose it. This Nice goal arrived precisely on an offensive transition, [and] it is something that we should have managed better. »
PSG lost 3-1 at Nantes in February after beating Madrid 1-0 in the Champions League first leg thanks to a stunning winner from Mbappe.
“Every game is different” said Pochettino. “You have to take into account the context, that in the Champions League it’s not the same as in Ligue 1.”
Pochettino predicted PSG would be present « optimal » form for the trip to Spain, when Los Blancos target Mbappe’s future could be decided by the result.
