“Your shine bothers them”: Neymar offers support to Rodrygo amid racist abuse following Brazil’s loss to Argentina

Brazilian football star Neymar Jr., has come out in solidarity with teammate Rodrygo, after the latter was subjected to racial abuse from a few Argentine fans. Rodrygo was in the spotlight, but for non-footballing reasons, during Brazil’s 0-1 loss to Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers on Wednesday.

Neymar, who has shared the pitch with Rodrygo several times for Brazil, has come out to support him, after the Real Madrid forward was on the receiving end of racial abuse from Argentina fans, who were all riled up because of Rodrygo’s behavior on the pitch and his verbal altercation with Lionel Messi, after the Argentina captain decided to walk off the field along with his teammates.

Neymar supports Rodrygo with heartfelt message

The 31-year-old Al Hilal star took to Instagram to put his statement of solidarity for Brazilian teammate Rodrygo, who was unfortunately a victim of racism after the match and his social media was flooded by vile and racist remarks.

Rodrygo responded against the racism through his Instagram via a monochromatic post which read “Racists are always on duty,” and that his “social networks were invaded with insults and all kinds of nonsense”.

Neymar, the all-time Brazilian top-scorer, put up Rodrygo’s post in his story, and wrote, “Teu brilho incomoda, não pare nunca!”, which translates to, “Your shine bothers them, don’t ever stop.”

Neymar has always been vocal against racism, and had similarly put a message in solidarity with Vinicius Jr., another Brazilian and Real Madrid forward, who has recently been subjected towards similar racist behavior of fans. The former Barcelona and PSG star is out injured for the season and is currently continuing his rehabilitation program.

What happened to Rodrygo in the Brazil-Argentina game?

The WC Qualifier between Brazil and Argentina was a heated contest, both on and off the pitch, as there was a clash between the Brazilian police and a few Argentine fans. When the Argentina captain, Lionel Messi, took his players off the field as a sign of protest, he was questioned by Rodrygo, leading to a verbal altercation between the two. Rodrygo’s antics did not go down well with the Argentine fans, which led to racist comments on his social media handle. 

Rodrygo also shared a post by TNT Sports Brasil in one of his stories, and captioned “Anything new especially coming from these people?”, targeting the Argentine fans. Rodrygo has received support from fans worldwide who have come out in numbers to ensure there is no room for racism to exist in any manner.

However, one section of fans believes that Rodrygo provoked the crowd into abusing him by misbehaving with Messi and his Argentina teammates and calling the Argentine team cowards for leaving the pitch.

What steps do you think are necessary to end racism in football? Make sure to let us know what you think in the comments section.