Neymar ready for rough season
PARIS: Neymar shrugged off a hostile reception as he marked his return to action for Paris Saintgermain with a stunning injurytime winner, and then insisted it was time to move on from the saga of his aborted return to Barcelona. The world’s most expensive player was booed and insulted by sections of the PSG support in the Ligue 1 match against Strasbourg at the Parc des Princes.
That seemed set to be the only story of the afternoon until the second minute of added time when, with the game still goalless, the Brazilian met Abdou Diallo’s cross with an acrobatic effort that sent the ball arcing back over his own head and in off the post, sealing a 1-0 win.
It was a remarkable goal and a reminder of why PSG paid a world record 222 million euros ($264 million at the time) to sign Neymar in 2017. It also leaves them two points clear of Rennes at the top of Ligue 1.
“I made it clear that I have nothing against the fans, nothing against Paris Saint-germain as a club. Everyone knows I wanted to leave. I am not going to get into the details of what happened,” he said after the game.
“It is time to turn the page. Today I am a Paris Saint-germain player and I am going to give everything on the field.” He had not played for his club since May and had been left on the sidelines in their first four league games of the campaign because of the uncertainty surrounding his future. However, having been resigned to a third season in France, he was handed a start by coach Thomas Tuchel here, and loud jeers greeted his name as the teams were read out. He was also regularly whistled by fans when he touched the ball.
“It is not the first time I have been booed by everyone,” Neymar admitted. “I played in Brazil away from home, I was widely booed. I have played in finals and been booed, I have played here in France, away from home, and also been booed.”
INTER WIN, JUVE HELD
MILAN: Inter Milan reclaimed top spot in Serie A after a 1-0 win over 10-man Udinese on Saturday as Juventus lost three players to injury in a painful goalless draw at Fiorentina to complicate preparations for next week’s Champions League opener.
Stefano Sensi’s diving header was enough to seal a maximum nine points for Antonio Conte’s Inter ahead of their European opener against Slavia Prague in the San Siro next Tuesday.
But as Maurizio Sarri made his debut on the Juventus bench after recovering from pneumonia, the Italian champions showed signs of weakness four days before their trip to Atletico Madrid.
Juventus are trailing two points behind Inter Milan after three games and could be overtaken by city rivals Torino who host promoted Lecce on Monday.