Khaberni - Neymar, the star of Santos, sparked a widespread controversy in Brazil due to the statements he made after a match in the Brazilian football league.
Santos played their match in the Brazilian league yesterday morning against Remo, where Neymar's team won with two goals to none.
Neymar received a yellow card in the 87th minute, which led to his attack against the referee after the match, expressing his displeasure with several refereeing decisions.
Neymar said in statements published by the Spanish newspaper "Mundo Deportivo": "This referee wants to be the star of the match and shows great disrespect for the players, he does not want to talk and he does not want to communicate, he is the one who runs the match and wants to control everything."
It was clarified that what ignited the fuse was a specific phrase uttered by Neymar, which is (Acordou de chico e veio assim pro jogo), a Portuguese phrase translated to "woke up on the wrong side of the bed."
However, this phrase is used in Brazil in a derogatory way to refer to women during menstruation: "she woke up in her menstrual period."
The same newspaper reported that the term "chico" has historical connotations linked to filth, which enhances its offensive nature, and Neymar's sexist and offensive statements against women were widely condemned in Brazil and sparked a wave of criticism on social media and in the press; this controversy completely overshadowed the otherwise good performance by the Brazilian star.
Although some claimed that Neymar's protests were not well understood, many were upset by his language, especially since he laughed during his talk and his statements were considered offensive and discriminatory against women.
Earlier this year, Gustavo Marquez, a defender at Red Bull Bragantino, was suspended for 12 matches due to sexually offensive comments directed at referee Daiene Muniz, which Neymar might face after his statements against the match referee.
If he is suspended for 12 matches, it would be a significant blow to his dream of participating with the Brazilian team in the next World Cup finals this summer in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
