Football
ESPN staff 9y

Neymar should 'seriously think about how he acts,' says Xavi

Legendary Barcelona midfielder Xavi says teammate Neymar must learn to show more respect to his opponents on the field.

Xavi and Neymar celebrated Barcelona's fifth Champions League title over the weekend after the blaugrana beat Juventus 3-1 in Berlin.

With the Brazilian now in Chile for the Copa America tournament, Xavi shared his thoughts on the 23-year-old, who recently came under fire for perceived showboating in Barca's Copa del Rey final win over Athletic Bilbao.

"He should seriously think about how he acts [in the future]," the newly signed Al Sadd man told Sport on Thursday.

"I understand people's attitudes to his [rainbow flick] against Athletic Bilbao in the Copa [del Rey]. Some saw it as a lack of respect.

"Those things in Brazil are accepted, but not so much [in Spain]. He should reflect on it because he's an extraordinary guy, a hard worker and humble.

"But he has this Brazilian trait, which sees such things as part of the show. [In Spain], it looks like a lack of respect."

Xavi went on to explain his perceived dust-up with the former Santos player during Barcelona's Champions League bus parade, which got some traction on social media.

A video shows the 2010 World Cup winner shoving Neymar away as the Brazil No. 10 appeared to reach at Xavi's feet.

"[Some players] were trying to remove my shoes and pushing me when I was standing on the edge of the bus," he added.

"I told them to stop fooling around and that they should've been focusing on the fans instead.

"It's okay to have three or four beers, but the parade was for the fans and to thank them."

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