In “Rothen ignites” this Monday on RMC, Jérôme Rothen expressed his incomprehension after Neymar’s remarks on a possible stoppage of his career at the end of the 2022 World Cup.
Neymar will be in Qatar next winter. But he will probably not go to the United States, Mexico and Canada in 2026. Brazil’s number 10 explains in a DAZN documentary that the next World Cup may be his “last”. “I see it as my last because I do not know if I have the mental strength to stay in football,” says the Parisian. “A terrible statement for PSG” according to Jérôme Rothen, while Neymar officially extended his contract last May until 2025 (with an additional season planned).
“Neymar is a fabulous player when he is in good form. The problem is that he is in a bad phase. And there it is a terrible statement for PSG, believes the former Parisian midfielder in” Rothen ignites “this Monday on RMC. It lacks spirit, enthusiasm. When you read between the lines, PSG, he does not care. There is the love that Brazil has, for try to win a World Cup. His last chance will be in Qatar in a year. But I want to remind him of his duties. When you are a player in that category, that you are the emblematic figure of a club for more than four years, which you have extended for five years and which you have decided to give the end of your career to PSG, you cannot declare that. “
“Of course, the private life of any player can be complicated, adds Jérôme Rothen. When he talks like that, you have the impression that he is having a little depression. But when your name is Neymar, with the image that you send, you can not make public outings like that. That you manage your problems in private, it does not worry. We all agree that it is not because Neymar is one of the greatest players in the world that he can not have moods, but you have to hide them. When he speaks, and it is not often, it is almost always denigration against the PSG. Leonardo takes over the president of Real, the Mbappé clan. But on Neymar, he never says anything. Normally, your flagship player must be exemplary at all levels. I hope they will not give him his bonus. ‘ethics with statements like that. For me, it is abused. He will have to face his responsibilities soon. “
Di Meco: “I think that makes him human”
For Eric Di Meco, on the other hand, “he is a man who talks about his job, the psychological difficulty and the fact of playing until 35 when you started at the top level at 16”. “I find that makes him human,” says the former Marseillais in “Rothen ignites”. If he stops before the end of his contract, he sits on millions. It is a mark of respect for his club. Look at Michel Platini, he stopped early. And at the time, there was no pressure from the media, the entourage … He pulled the curtain and it was more mental than physical. Zinedine Zidane also stops the France team at one point because it’s too hard. Neymar, there, it’s honesty, what he does. “