Brazil forward Neymar Jr. was inconsolable after Croatia dumped his team out of the FIFA World Cup on penalties in the quarter-final match.
One of the finest players of his generation, Neymar Jr was left heartbroken in the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2022 against Croatia on Friday. Neymar seemed to have earned his team’s qualification to the semi-finals in extra time.But a late equalizer from Bruno Petkovic saw the game go into a penalty shootout. When it came to scoring from the spot, Croatia qualified for the semi-finals after beating Brazil 4–2. Brazil’s dream of winning a sixth World Cup shattered, Neymar Jr finds it hard to console.
Brazil will have to wait at least four more years for that sixth title – by 2026 it will be 24 years since they won it.
Veteran Brazil center back Thiago Silva, playing in the final FIFA World Cup of his career, has admitted that he will have to end his career without lifting the trophy.
“It’s difficult,” Silva said. “I have gone through some disappointments in my life and it hurts a lot when we lose something important that we have as an aim. But we have to keep our heads up and try to move on. Not an option.”
“I think all of a sudden we lost our concentration,” said Silva. “We’re not used to hitting the break like that. We got a bit disorganized and that’s where the goal came from.”
“Sadly as a player, I am not going to lift this trophy,” he said. He added, “Who knows, I might get another role in the future.”
Instead of a blockbuster South American semi-final between Brazil and Argentina, it is Croatia who will face the winners of the clash between Lionel Messi’s side and the Netherlands later on Friday.
Watch: Heartbroken Neymar Cries Relentlessly After Brazil’s World Cup Exit
source-sports.ndtv.com