Croatia beat Brazil's heavily favored squad in a penalty shootout in the quarterfinals of the 2022 World Cup tournament.
REUTERS/Hannah Mckay
Brazilian soccer star Neymar broke down moments after Croatia knocked Brazil out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in a penalty shootout Friday.
The superstar — whose full name is Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior — was in tears and buried his face in his shirt after the heavily favored Brazilian side was defeated by Croatia in the quarterfinals of the tournament held in Qatar.
Croatia advances to the semifinal stage of the competition, and plays the winner of Friday's Argentina vs. Netherlands game.
—FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 9, 2022
Photo by Getty Images
Defeat may have been an extra bitter pill for Neymar to swallow as he had scored earlier in the game with an extraordinary play that bewildered the Croatia team.
The strike put Neymar on 77 goals for the Brazil national team, equaling the record set by soccer GOAT Pele.
There is a dispute over how many goals Pele scored for Brazil. While FIFA says 77, Brazil — and Pele — say its actually 95.
Regardless, Neymar's extra-time goal was one that would have made the 82-year-old proud as Neymar combined with teammate Lucas Paqueta, foiled Croatia defender Borna Sosa, and found space to fire a pitch-perfect shot into the roof of the net from a near point-blank range.
Watch the goal right here:
—FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 9, 2022
As the goal was struck in the 106th minute, with barely 15 minutes left to play, it seemed like Brazil had done enough to progress to the final four.
Yet Croatia, in this modern era of soccer, cannot be counted out and scored via Bruno Petkovic with only four minutes remaining.
With the score tied 1-1, the game went to a sudden death penalty shootout, which Croatia won 4-2, prompting tears from Neymar, his teammates, and many Brazil fans in attendance.
The World Cup concludes with the tournament final Sunday, December 18.
