Spurs winger Lucas Moura has come to the defence of compatriot and ex-Paris Saint Germain teammate Neymar. Neymar has endured criticism for his perceived off pitch lifestyle and his propensity towards dramatics on the pitch.
Moura, who played with Neymar at PSG and in the Brazilian national team, says the criticism of the player is unfair. Lucas says he can sympathise as a dribbling wide player and he believes Neymar gets rough treatment as a result.
“Sometimes football is unfair. Neymar's characteristics, and I also have these characteristics, is as a dribbler, of starting the attack. Because of the quality of Neymar and his characteristics, opponents get annoyed and he gets fouled.
“Neymar takes a lot of punches, a lot of kicks, but that turns out to be normal because of his style of play. Already the criticism is a bit unfair. Yes, it's his style of play, it was what made him reach today's level, which made him the idol of Brazil, the player of our team, but, like everything else in life, we will always come across people who love us or hate us. It's a part of it, and I think he knows how to handle it well.”
