Neymar found himself seething with anger when a disgruntled Brazilian fan hurled a box of popcorn in his direction.

This unpleasant incident unfolded following Brazil’s unexpected 1-1 draw against Venezuela in Cuiaba.

The opening goal of the match, courtesy of Arsenal star Gabriel Magalhaes in his first appearance for Brazil, was negated by Eduard Bello’s late equalizer.

The draw marks the end of Brazil’s flawless record in the qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup.

The home crowd was frustrated by the outcome, and one individual made their displeasure known by tossing a box of popcorn at Neymar, who was donning the captain’s armband.

Understandably, Neymar was livid and responded by gesticulating and shouting at the fan. He was ushered down the tunnel by his teammates, and Brazil’s interim manager, Fernando Diniz, strongly criticized the unsportsmanlike behaviour of the popcorn-throwing supporter.

Diniz conveyed his disapproval to the press, stating, “I completely disapprove,”

“Cursing and booing is fine. Throwing a bag of popcorn doesn’t do anything for anyone. It’s disrespectful towards those who came to play and tried to do the best they could.”

Brazil has only completed three matches in the World Cup qualification process and is expected to comfortably secure a place in the tournament to be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Six out of the ten South American nations will secure direct qualification, while one will enter an inter-confederation play-off.

Nonetheless, Diniz is eager to secure qualification at the earliest opportunity. The Brazilian fans are yearning for a sixth world title, with their most recent victory occurring 21 years ago in Japan and South Korea. Diniz further commented, “We could have had a second (goal), a third, a fourth.”

“We finished the plays poorly. We also shouldn’t have conceded Venezuela’s goal. We should have adjusted our marking and not given the opponent the chance to finish. But the team didn’t play a bad game. The players feel the heat and the difficulty of the pitch.”

Looking ahead to Neymar, the 2026 World Cup represents perhaps his final opportunity to clinch the prestigious championship. The 31-year-old’s career has experienced setbacks since his departure from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain in a record-breaking transfer six years ago.

Neymar’s stint in the French capital was marred by injuries, as he made just 112 League appearances over six seasons and was subsequently transferred to Saudi side Al-Hilal during the summer. The former Santos prodigy is yet to score his first goal in the Saudi Pro League.

For many years, Neymar was seen as Brazil’s great hope. He propelled them to victory in the 2013 Confederations Cup and the 2016 Olympics but has struggled to achieve significant milestones since then, missing out on Brazil’s 2019 Copa America victory due to injury.

EITA! O QUE FOI ISSO? JOGARAM PIPOCA NO NEYMAR E ELE FICOU REVOLTADO! MANDOU O TORCEDOR PRA AQUELE LUGAR! ⚠️🚨 Alerta de clima muito tenso na Arena Pantanal! Pqp! O que aconteceu? O camisa 10 ficou muito bravo! 🤬🤬🤬 pic.twitter.com/49XtPfHZG5

— TNT Sports BR (@TNTSportsBR) October 13, 2023

Neymar

This season he played in total 3 times for 206 minutes for Pro League.

Neymar didn’t score any goal for Al Hilal. He procured twice assists. He received no yellow cards and no red cards.

His team is currently 1st in Pro League. In the last match Al Hilal won 3-0 against Al Akhdoud. The next match in Pro League will be against Al Khaleej.

Al Hilal performance and stats

Al Hilal is currently 1st in the Pro League with 23 points.

In the last 9 games, it has won 7 times and drawn twice. In its last match, Al Hilal won 0-3 against Al Akhdoud.​​

It has a positive goal difference after scoring 26 goals and conceding 7.​

Al Hilal will play the next match in Pro League against Al Khaleej on Wednesday 18th of October in Riyadh.​

The post Neymar showered in popcorn as angry Brazilian supporters react to surprising tie with Venezuela appeared first on Soccer Tonic.