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By: Ebenezer Bajela.
In a tweet by Frank Khalid, a British entrepreneur, the owner of West London Film Studios, Elbrook Cash and Carry, Brazil superstar Neymar has questioned African players’ commitment to their countries despite the abundance of talents from the continent.
The Paris Saint Germain forward, in his statement, said Africa was blessed with an array of stars, but added that they mostly put up good performances only for their foreign clubs, but don’t show the same commitment for their countries.
Neymar, whose country Brazil has won the World Cup on five occasions, ascribed their achievement to the enthusiasm shown by South American and European players for their respective countries.
“African players have talent, but they only show it to their respective clubs, not for their respective countries,” Neymar was quoted as saying by Khalid.
“This is why Brazil has five World Cups because African players don’t have a lot of passion to represent their countries like South American teams and the Europeans. It’s surprising because the best African players play in the best clubs in Europe.”
The 31-year-old’s assertion may not be far from the truth as several Nigerian star players have been castigated for showing more commitment to their clubs than the national team.
Neymar has made 124 appearances for Brazil, scoring 77 goals.
In the space of 13 years, since he made his debut for the Seleção in 2010, the former Barcelona forward has only managed to win the Confederations Cup (2013) and was a runner-up in the Copa América in 2021.