Opinion – Sandro Macedo: How to cheer for Neymar’s Brazil, despite Neymar?

Now it’s official. The Copa atmosphere is in the air. Tite has already called up 26 players, with 25 of them active + Daniel Alves, a group guy.

As a fan of Arsenal, I like Gabriel Martinelli, but I have doubts if he would be called up if he was playing at the same level presented in another league, like the Brazilian one… or the Mexican one, perhaps.

I would have preferred that Professor Tite had selected Roberto Firmino, who can even play as a point guard in place of Neymar — it’s always good to think that we won’t have Neymar in at least one game… just in case (cards and stomps are terrible).

Still observing the preferences of this window, Gabriel Magalhães, from Arsenal (coincidence?), seemed a more interesting name than that of Bremer, who played half-time with Tite and is the holder of the lame Juventus, sixth place in the Italian Championship – Arsenal is leader from English, better write it down while it’s true.

In a chat promoted by Sheet after the call-up, Casagrande, always emphatic (“abraço, Casão”), said in other words that the call-up of Daniel Alves is a slap in the face to the right-back class in Brazil. In fact, worse than losing a place in the national team to a player who is more or less on a team in Europe (“hugs, Alex Telles”) is losing a spot to one who doesn’t even play in Mexico (with all due respect).

Although Tostão has already defended Dani’s call-up. And I find it difficult to disagree with Mestre Tostão. But I still think Professor Tite could have offered Dani a better explanation. “He IS my representative in the dressing room; he is an aggregator; he tells the best jokes; the only one who likes the end of ‘Game of Thrones’.” Or… the best one… “It’s going to help me take care of Neymar.”

Perhaps this last reason was worth a summons. That’s because the great Buddhist question of this Cup will be: how to cheer for Neymar’s Brazil, despite Neymar?

Pele and the entire national team also had problems with the crowd in the 1970 World Cup, when football was used by the dictatorship. Pele, the big name of that squad, didn’t talk about it. And many criticized his omission.

Neymar went of his own free will to get involved with politics a month before the World Cup. And, of course, everyone is free to have their own preference. But Neymar’s motives have nothing to do with the good of the nation. He offered support to President Bolsonaro saying, “He helped me through the worst moment of my life.”

The player refers to the rape accusation he suffered in 2019. Bolsonaro, at the time, said that Neymar (27 years old at the time) was just a boy and that he believed in him – if Zé Love were a candidate for the presidency, he would probably also receive support from the ace. The case was dismissed by the Public Ministry for lack of evidence.

On the field and in life, Neymar still seems to be an individualist. More even in life than in the countryside. In the case of presidential support, it does not matter, for example, the government’s action during the pandemic, when it took time to buy vaccines – to name just one case that must have had repercussions there in Paris, where Tite’s number 10 lives.

On social media, Neymar is always on the attack. He confronts celebrities, sub-celebrities, players, ex-players, commentators, journalists… The striker makes the line “they’re with me or they’re against me”. On Twitter or Instagram, any type of comment, from the curious to the cruel, can be made, as long as it ends with three “crying with laughter” emojis. So we don’t have to take the boy seriously.

Neymar promised to honor the Brazilian president, in office until the end of the year, with his first goal in Qatar. He did not promise a goal for victims of Covid, or for those suffering from the restriction of human rights in Qatar. Tite has two weeks to make the number 10 rethink his focus.

And how to cheer for Brazil despite Neymar? We have Vinicius Junior, the guy who will appear in every commercial break at the Worlds (marketers are wise); and Richarlison, that, yes, a representative with the face of the country in lawns around the world.