The iconic midfielder offered
advice to his ex-club mate, instructing him to think about how he behaves on
the pitch, but hailed him as a hard working and humble player
Former Barcelona captain Xavi believes former team-mate Neymar must
think about how he acts on the pitch, insisting that what is acceptable in
Brazil does not go down well in Europe.
The
midfielder was referring to an altercation Neymar found himself involved in
during the final minutes of the Catalans' 3-1 Copa del Rey final win over
Athletic Bilbao, when the Basque players had taken offence at a piece of
extravagent skill he attempted.
And Xavi
used the example to question the 23-year-old's mentality, stating the
young Brazilian had to cut out the elements of his game that simply were
not tolerated in the European arena.
"He
needs to seriously think about how he should act. Maybe that sort of thing is
accepted in Brazil, but it's a thorny issue in Spain," Xavi told Sport .
"He
should reflect about it because he's an extraordinary, hard-working and humble
lad, but he has that Brazilian attitude, according to which such things are
part of the show, while here they're seen as a lack of respect."
Neymar
has not only been accused of unsporting behaviour during his stint in Spain by
opponents but team-mates as well, with Xavi himself caught on video
berating the forward while Barcelona celebrated winning their treble with an
open top bus parade on Sunday.
"He
was trying to take my shoes off and they were pushing me when I was standing on
the edge of the bus. I told them to stop messing around and to focus on the
fans, since the parade is for them," he added.
"It's
alright to have three or four beers, but the parade is for the supporters, to
thank them, and you can't just be in your own world."
