Neymar delivered a show of support for fellow countryman Vinicius Junior when netting for Santos in their meeting with Vasco da Gama. Real Madrid superstar Vini has found himself at the centre of another racism storm in Europe, with Neymar offering his backing to a Brazil international colleague when mimicking the 25-year-old’s goal celebration.
In the first leg of a Champions League knockout phase play-off encounter between Real and Benfica, which took place at Estadio da Luz, Vinicius was allegedly subjected to racist abuse from Argentine winger Gianluca Prestianni – who has subsequently been provisionally banned by UEFA.
It is not the first time that Blancos forward Vinicius has been targeted by rival players and supporters. He did, however, make a telling contribution to a keenly-contested clash with Benfica – netting in both legs of a 3-1 aggregate victory for Real.
His celebration sparked unsightly scenes in Lisbon, as he danced by the corner flag, but the same routine was broken out when confirming Real’s progress to the last 16 of elite European competition on home soil at Santiago Bernabeu.
Neymar is among those to have been monitoring events from afar, with Brazil’s all-time leading goalscorer back in his homeland with Santos. The former Barcelona playmaker was in action on Thursday when facing Vasco da Gama.
He guided his current employers to a 2-1 win. After hitting the net himself, Neymar made a point of heading towards the corner flag and copying Vinicius’ celebration. He told reporters afterwards: “The dance was for Vinícius Jr. When he scored his first goal there in Portugal and faced insults and racism and all that, I said to him: ‘When you score a goal, celebrate in the same way, because if I score a goal, I’ll do the same thing’.”
Neymar grabbed both of Santos’ goals in their latest fixture. Said brace represents just the second time in the last six months that the 34-year-old has netted more than one goal in a single match.
He has faced criticism of his form and fitness of late, but told SporTV of delivering the perfect response to any doubters: “Last week they said I was the worst player in the world. Football is like that…one day you are retired, another you have to go to the World Cup. I’m living one day at a time. I’m working, getting in the best possible form.”
Neymar is hoping to secure a place in Brazil’s squad for the 2026 World Cup. With 79 international goals to his name, he has not represented his country since suffering knee ligament damage in the autumn of 2023.
