Hosts Brazil exorcise Maracana demons as they edge Germany on penalties to seal dramatic men’s soccer gold
Barcelona striker Neymar coverts the winning spot kick as Brazil triumph on penalties after 1-1 draw
Barcelona superstar Neymar ended some 116 years of hurt and ended Brazil’s Olympic football jinx with a stunning free-kick and the decisive penalty-shootout kick at the Maracana.
Brazil, despite their famous football pedigree, had never won the Olympic tournament, silver medallists three times – including last time in London – and bronze medallists twice.
The famed football stadium was packed to capacity and the 78,000 spectators – Usain Bolt among them – created scarcely believable noise, culminating in celebrations that went on for minutes as Neymar sank to his knees in tears after converting the 10th and final kick of the shoot-out after the game finished 1-1.
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He had given the team the lead with a stunning free-kick in the first half before Germany’s Max Meyer equalised in the second.
After eight perfect penalties in the shootout, Nils Petersen had his saved, leaving Neymar to make the long walk to the spot. Despite the pressure, he sent Timo Horn the wrong way and the crowd into raptures.
“This is one of the best things that have happened in my life,” he said afterwards, sporting a “100 per cent JESUS” headband. “That’s it. Now they’ll [the critics] have to swallow their words.”
Neymar has been in an ongoing war with media and fans at home, feeling they have been over-critical of the team and him in particular after they flopped at the World Cup and Copa America.