Olympics-Soccer-Stop booing or risk losing top players: Brazil coach

By Rodrigo Viga Gaier
Reuters

RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's top footballers could be tempted to abandon the national side if fans continue to boo them at the Rio Games, national team coach Rogerio Micale warned on Tuesday.

Fans have booed Brazil's Olympic team after successive 0-0 draws against South Africa and Iraq, with the 65,000 crowd at the National stadium mercilessly abusing their own players and chanting "Iraq! Iraq!" at the end of Sunday's game.

Much of their ire was focused on Neymar and Renato Augusto, two of the biggest names in the Olympic squad and two of three players permitted to be over the age of 23.

Micale called on fans to support the team in their must-win game against Denmark on Wednesday and warned that superstars like Neymar, who pressured his club Barcelona to be released for the Olympic competition, are under no obligation to play for their country.

"If we don't respect our stars, then they won't want to be with us," Micale said. "Neymar wanted to be with the national side and he had to take this on and at the age of 24 people are making so many demands of him."

Neymar has failed to show much of the form that made him so valuable first to Santos and now with Barcelona.

Fans have compared him unfavorably to women's team captain Marta and they were not pleased when he refused to talk in front of television cameras after the Iraq debacle.

Brazil have two points and are joint second in Group A with Iraq, who also drew their first two games. Denmark lead with four points and South Africa, who play Iraq on Wednesday, are bottom with one point.

"I have no doubt that the fans will be with us ... at a moment as difficult as this and that their support will make all the difference," said Brazil midfielder Renato Augusto.

The team that will face Denmark will have at least one change with Tiago Maia out after getting two yellow cards.

But Micale promised not to panic or throw weeks of preparation out the window.

"We always have to reflect and even more so when we don't get the desired result," Micale said.

"We have a way of playing that allows us to make changes and we can't change that without training. We're not going to change everything because we're not winning. What we can do is make some alterations." (Writing by Andrew Downie; Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)

08/09/2016 17:23