Thiago Silva suggested Messi would have quit if he faced the same criticism as Neymar

Thiago Silva said Messi couldn’t handle criticism like Neymar does. Neymar faces scrutiny for his attitude and tendency to go down easily when fouled. Silva has defended Neymar his Brazilian teammate at both the national team and Paris Saint Germain.

They’ve played together 143 times contributing to four goals jointly. In an interview with TNT Sports in June this year via 777 Score. Silva discussed the former Barcelona attacker sharing final his thoughts and opinions.

I just don’t get it. Watching Neymar play everything he does looks effortless. It’s incredibly hard to do what he does. No other player in the world has his skills and quality. He’s incredibly strong mentally. I saw an interview with Messi where he said that if he had received the same criticism Neymar has faced in his career he would have quit.

The 32 year old was unable to participate in the recent Copa America with his national team. He moved from Paris Saint Germain to Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2023 for a reported fee of approximately €90 million.

Since then the player has participated in three matches in the Saudi Pro League assisting on all three occasions. However he sustained an ACL injury in October 2023 and has been sidelined ever since.

When Neymar picked Lionel Messi ahead of himself in a rapid fire interview

Neymar appears to be a big fan of his former teammates from Paris Saint Germain and Barcelona especially Lionel Messi. In a quick interview he did in early July this year the Brazilian chose Messi over his rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

He was then asked to pick between himself and Messi whom he has played with in 206 matches and contributed to 67 goals together. In response the Saudi Pro League star said via SPORTbible:

Messi after his contract ended in Paris Messi chose to join MLS club Inter Miami in the summer of 2023. The 37 year old won his second Copa America that summer following his success in leading his country to the World Cup title in Qatar in 2022. He has won 10 La Liga titles and the UEFA Champions League three times along with other honors during his time with Barcelona.