Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar's father has come out in defence of his son with a passionate Instagram post after the player was widely criticised for his performance against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.
Despite taking the lead in the game, the Ligue 1 outfit ended up losing 3-1 to Los Blancos in the first leg of their Round of 16 tie at the Santiago Bernabeu, and many questioned the Brazilian's contribution in the match.
Neymar Santos Sr, who is also his son's agent, has since taken to social media to slam those critics, comparing them to "vultures".
Translated form Portuguese, the caption reads: "In a 'war' there are always the ones who feed on victories and those who, like vultures, feed on carrion of the defeated. They do nothing, make nothing but living on the shine or, more often, on their 'prey's' most difficult moments.
"We know a lot of people in the football world that have this 'vulture behaviour', without much of their own glow, always on the shadows of the most talented, to vent their own frustrations. They enjoy defeats, or a lost battle, to lurk around, waiting for the war to be lost to feed their own egos as vultures feed on carrion.
"They failed to do so in the Rio Games but stood there, waiting for their first chance to bring their bad omen. But remember: we lost a battle, not the war. My son has always been 'waging' this war, facing the good combats, dodging vultures and coming back stronger each time!! Mostly, he always respected everyone, even the vultures...
"We lost a battle, as for the war we'll see, it will go on as long as he's on a football pitch. And be sure of this, he'll be reborn as a phoenix, prepared for as many combats there will be ahead! As for you, vulture, you'll be left starving. And there will be nothing left but to swallow your words, as rotten as carrion."
Do you think Neymar deserves the treatment he is getting from his critics?
