Neymar told me not to stop him mocking Haaland celebration – Marquinhos

Paris Saint-Germain's players trolled Erling Haaland after their 2-0 defeat of Borussia Dortmund in response to supposed taunting.

Published : Apr 12, 2020 17:07 IST

Neymar and Marquinhos
Neymar and Marquinhos
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Neymar and Marquinhos

Neymar's celebration mocking Erling Haaland in Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund had been planned as retribution for apparent taunts, and the forward told Marquinhos not to stop him.

Norwegian 19-year-old Haaland had scored both goals in Dortmund's 2-1 win over PSG in the last-16 first leg in February, celebrating by sitting cross-legged and pretending to meditate.

The situation was exacerbated by seemingly fake social media posts attributed to Haaland going viral, with the suspect image including a caption that read, "Paris, my city, not yours".

 

PSG reversed the deficit in the second leg as goals from Neymar and Juan Bernat secured them a 2-0 win – but still much of the focus was on Haaland and the Brazilian.

Neymar mimicked Haaland's celebration when he scored, while the whole team partook on the pitch at full-time and others posted photos of themselves doing similar on social media later.

"He [Neymar] likes this stuff," Marquinhos told YouTube channel Desimpedidos. "Neymar is not just a footballer, he is not afraid and always responds to provocations.

"After his goal, I asked him if he had taken everything out [on Dortmund with his goal]. He warned me, I told him to wait until the end of the match, but he told me to leave it and not to stop him.

"There had been some statements by their players after the away match. They won the first game and in the dressing room tunnel there was taunting and shouting against us."

Neymar was apparently unaware the supposed Haaland social post is thought to be fake, as he also mimicked that after the match - his iteration reading, "Paris, our city, not yours".

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