banned from taking further part in the Copa
America, but has total faith in his compatriots
Brazil captain Neymar insists he did not do
anything to the referee to deserve a four-game ban
after his side's 1-0 Copa America loss to
Colombia .
The 23-year-old left the country on Monday after
his tournament was ended with a suspension from
Conmebol for attempting to headbutt Jeison
Murillo and allegedly insulting referee Enrique
Osses after the final whistle.
But Neymar has continued to protest his
innocence over the incident in Santiago, even as
he revealed the choice for him to leave the Brazil
camp had been a joint one.
"It was a family decision to leave," the Barcelona
forward told Jornal Nacional. "I talked to my father,
and then I told Dunga and team manager Gilmar
Rinaldi. They agreed.
"Nothing happened in the tunnel, basically. I was
inside it, and waiting to ask the ref why he
dismissed me. Then a huddle took place
and security guards came in, thinking I was
nervous, that I wanted to attack him.
"That's how it came to this."
Nevertheless, Neymar remains confident his
compatriots have the quality and experience
needed to lift the Copa America after seeing them
progress to the quarter-finals top of Group
C, reiterating his comments from a lengthy post on
Instagram .
"I think there's a lot of life in Selecao without
Neymar. The players have shown that they can win
games and win Copa America," he continued.
"Brazil has plenty of great players. I'm absolutely
confident of this team and the players that are
there representing it. They are all big names who'll
take care of business."
Brazil will face Paraguay, the team that knocked
them out on penalties at the same stage in 2011,
this Saturday.
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