Neymar's father hits out at son's critics after CL defeat

Neymar's father spoke out at what he called the "vultures" circling his son on Thursday, in an apparent reference to criticism of the Paris Saint-Germain striker's less than stellar performance in the previous night's loss to Real Madrid. Neymar was widely criticised as being ineffective during Real's 3-1 win over PSG in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie in Spain.

#Neymar’s father hits out at son’s critics after #ChampionsLeague defeat https://t.co/sj3Z6xX0wd pic.twitter.com/Jdhh7UUWrM

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) February 16, 2018

"In a war there are those who feed off victories and those who, like vultures, feed off the carcasses of the defeated," Neymar's father wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of his son. Neymar Snr, who is also his son's agent, was nevertheless adamant that PSG can qualify for the quarter-finals with a win in second leg of the tie in Paris on March 6.

Neymar's father hits out at son's critics after loss 3-1 to Real, calling them 'vultures.' My boy will rise again, he says. He's missing the point. A lot of the criticism is amplified because of Neymar's off-the-field behaviour (i.e unlikeability). Pic from dad's Instagram pic.twitter.com/ISzDu0odFz

— Andrew Downie (@adowniebrazil) February 15, 2018

"My son has been battling since he was a child," he wrote, "always fighting fair, always avoiding the vultures, always rising again stronger. "We lost a battle but as for the war, we'll see, because it will last as long as we're on the field."

Nothing but respect between Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar. ? #UCL pic.twitter.com/kntH9tBFGQ

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) February 14, 2018