After a slow start, for which he was much criticised, Neymar came alive when it counted, scoring four times in three knockout games.
Advertisement
The gold medal remained the only worldwide honour evading Brazil, and the 24-year-old clinched it with the winning penalty in a 5-4 shootout victory over Germany.
“This is one of the best things that has happened in my life”, said the tearful Barcelona star.
Nevertheless, the capacity crowd created a fantastic atmosphere in the Maracana and got the result they desperately craved.
Making the tournament compulsory at least for under-23s seems like a necessary step for Federation Internationale de Football Association to take if the prestige of Olympic gold is to be preserved, according to many sporting leaders.
“This phase now has passed”.
“It hurts a bit but we are still proud about the medal”.
The newly appointed Brazil coach Rogerio Micale added, We have a batch of players who are extremely dedicated, professional and with great technical skill.
Talk of revenge was exaggerated. He is not simply one of the finest players in the world.
However, so wounded was Brazil’s pride that another capitulation on home soil was unimaginable.
Brazil have won every major global title, from the World Cup, which they have claimed five times, to the Copa America, the Confederations Cup, the under-20 and under-17 world championships.
The end justified the means. It was also the Olympics’ first all-European final.
However, it was far from a smooth ride to gold.
The Germany attacks continued after the break, and in the 59th minute the Maracana was silenced as the game’s other captain Meyer expertly converted Jeremy Toljan’s low cross into the bottom corner.
Canadian captain Christine Sinclair scored in the victory for her 165th career goal in her 250th appearance for the national team.
“I do not take it as a burden, it is you [the media] who put it on me”, Neymar said in an interview with SporTV.
Members of Neymar’s entourage were forced to hold the forward back on two occasions to stop him coming to blows with the individual in the crowd.
“This is part of the Brazilian culture”.
“This phase has passed”, said Micale. “We really needed something like this”.
The winning penalty capped a tumultuous two years for Neymar.
Brazil had never won gold in Olympic football – making this the last major title they didn’t have.
Yet, his success on the pitch has been overshadowed by off-field scandal.
His tricky relationship with the media looks set to continue.
Advertisement
Tite, the coach of Brazil’s senior national team, will announce his squad for those matches on Monday, with Gabriel Jesus and Gabigol among those expected to be named alongside national team veterans such as Thiago Silva, Marcelo, Oscar, Willian and Douglas Costa.
