Messi, Neymar booed by own fans in PSG match
Julien Laurens has strong criticism for Paris Saint-Germain after they were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid. (0:56)
Lionel Messi and Neymar were subjected to boos and jeers from Paris Saint-Germain fans in their first game since their dramatic Champions League collapse to Real Madrid on Wednesday.
Lining up against Bordeaux in Ligue 1 on Sunday, both players were relentlessly booed by the home supporters and their every touch jeered. Kylian Mbappe — likely to move to Real Madrid on a free transfer in the summer — escaped the home fans’ wrath.
At one point in the first half, the home fans booed as Messi and Neymar stood over a free kick, only to sarcastically cheer when Neymar hit his effort over the bar. Mbappe then put PSG 1-0 ahead on 24 minutes and the home support cheered his goal. Neymar then made it 2-0 after 52 minutes but he was then roundly whistled and did not celebrate his goal. PSG won the match 3-0 against the league’s bottom club to move 15 points clear at the top and continue their march towards the Ligue 1 title.
PSG’s “Ultra” group, the Collectif Ultras Paris, released a statement on Twitter ahead of the match, blasting the club’s direction.
“Our Paris Saint-Germain deserves people who serve it, not people who are served by it. Against Bordeaux on Sunday, we will show our displeasure and we ask everyone who loves this club, who will be present, to unite with our non-violent action,” it read.
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PSG fans were left fuming in midweek when their club collapsed amid a storming Real Madrid fightback in the round of 16. Leading 1-0 from the first leg, Mbappe then made it 2-0 to the Ligue 1 side before Karim Benzema scored a stunning hat trick to turn the tie on its head.
The French giants were left to rue another missed opportunity in Europe’s premier club competition — a trophy that continues to elude them despite the lavish investments made under ownership of Qatar Sports Investments.
In the aftermath of the defeat at the Bernabeu, sources told ESPN that Neymar and Gianluigi Donnarumma clashed in a dressing room bust-up and had to be separated by teammates following a heated exchange. Neymar responded to reports of the row on Instagram on Thursday, denying that a fight had taken place.
In one post, he published a screengrab of a WhatsApp conversation with Donnarumma.
“Hi Ney. Sorry about yesterday. This news story is unacceptable,” the goalkeeper said, before Neymar responded “No worries! That can happen in football. We’re a team, and we’re with you.”
In a second post, Neymar called the reports “a lie” and said “there was no fight inside the dressing room!”
Sources close to Donnarumma have denied to ESPN that the bust-up took place.