After easily advancing to the quarterfinals, Neymar and his Brazil teammates paid tribute to Pele after Monday night’s 4-1 World Cup victory over South Korea.
Before the half, Brazil had all but guaranteed their position in the round of eight in Qatar with goals from Vinicius Junior, Neymar, Richarlison, and Lucas Paqueta.
South Korea were vastly improved in the second half as Paik Seung-ho scored a stunning consolation but it was far too little too late, with Brazil advancing to face Croatia, who had earlier edged past Japan on penalties.
Following the match at Stadium 974 in Doha, the Brazil players unfurled a huge banner to the 82-year-old Pele, one of the greatest players of all time who is in poor health as he undergoes colon cancer treatment.
“It’s hard to talk about what Pele is going through right now but I wish him all the best,” said Neymar, who made his return from an ankle injury to play most of the game and scored the second goal from the penalty spot.
Brazil brought out a banner in support of Pelé following their win 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/k9otqVv6DW
— B/R Football (@brfootball) December 5, 2022
Trending Stories: Luka Modric Sums Up Croatia World Cup Win Over Japan
“I hope he will be back in good health as soon as possible and that we could have at least comforted him with the victory.”
Pele’s battle with colon cancer is providing motivation for the players to try to win a record-extending sixth world title – the first three of which Pele was part of.
“He needs a lot of strength from us and this victory is for him, so that he can come out of this situation and that we can be champions for him,” said Vinicius.
COMMENTS