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The funeral for Brazi football legend Pele is being held in Sao Paolo today, and seemingly every Brazilian in the country is in attendance. Except for Neymar, that is.
According to reports from the soccer world, the Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil forward did not make the trip to South America for Pele’s funeral and the decision is rubbing some Brazilian nationals the wrong way.
Pele funeral – have never seen anything like it. Cacophony of noise. Incredible. @MirrorFootball pic.twitter.com/S2fxqi2vKL
— Andy Lines (@andylines) January 3, 2023
During his club career, Pele — often cited as the best player to ever grace the game — played for two different teams: Santos from 1956, where he began playing when he was just 15 years old, to 1974, and with the New York Cosmos for the final two years of his career from 1975 to 1977.
In particular, Brazilian television presenter and journalist Jose Luiz Datena called out the 30-year-old global star:
“If Neymar wanted to be freed, he came,” Jose Luiz Datena said.
“Neymar could very well have pressured PSG to come here. He has already pressed the club several times to come to parties, why not ask PSG to say goodbye to Pele? I think Neymar, as a Brazilian player, had an obligation to come and see Pele’s coffin to say goodbye to him. It was important for Brazilian football.” [via SportBible]
Pelé, the Brazilian football legend that’s widely regarded as the greatest player of all time, passed away at the age of 82 years old last week following a battle with cancer.
Following the World Cup, PSG returned to action on Wednesday, December 28 with a 2-1 victory over Strasbourg. This past weekend, however, PSG lost 3-1 to Lens.
RELATED: Sports World Mourns As Brazilian Football Icon Pelé Passes Away At 82