Brazil finally entered into the semifinal of FIFA world cup but at what cost? They lost their sensational striker Neymar for entire event after he suffered a broken vertebra during the quarterfinal match. This is perhaps the biggest shock for South Americans coz their semifinal is going to be with Germans and if they can’t find a suitable substitute by then, it would be like falling from the sky. The incident happened in 88th minute of the game when Barca star forward collided with Colombia’s Juan Camilo Zuniga and later found he has broken his back and can’t play in remaining semi and final should they advance. According to team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar, injury is benign but more than enough to debar him off active football for at least one month. Luiz Felipe Scolari had predicted the scope of injury by looking at the way he was crying of pain in the field and later it was confirmed by the MRI scan. Informing the shocking loss to the whole nation, head coach of the national team, said, “We lost Neymar, which probably based, on what I’m seeing, he won’t be able to play. We knew he would be hunted, so we are in a difficult situation, but we have good players who can come in. I think we will have a great game.
“There will be a series of exams because he was kneed on his lower back and he was crying of pain. We don’t have an idea, but I can guarantee it won’t be easy for him to recover, based on what the doctor told us and the pain he’s in. I don’t know, I really don’t know. I hope it’s OK.”
The loss is not the only one for the Canarinho as centre-back Thiago Silva is also not available for the next match for his suspension off two yellow cards in the game with Colombia. Neymar, who has been impressive throughout the game without finding the net, Thiago Silva and David Luiz did the job this time with one goal each while James Rodriguez’s penalty shot was nothing more than a small resistance without any impact on the final tally.
Zuniga, who struck with the 22-year-old, reacted over the incident and said, “It was a typical play. I never had the intention of hurting any player. On the pitch, I play for my country, and never have the intention of hurting anybody. I was only defending my country’s jersey.
“The game was hotly contested, and Brazil were coming in strong and so were we. … I hope he recuperates soon that it is not serious as he is a great player for Brazil and for world football.”