It makes you wince just watching it
Neymar suffered a painful ankle injury during the closing moments of Paris Saint-Germain’s loss to Lyon on Sunday night.
Having shrugged off two tackles, Neymar was brought down by Lyon midfielder Thiago Mendes, who trapped the Brazilian’s left ankle under his leg and left him in agony on the floor.
Neymar was audibly crying from the pain as he waved for treatment from the bench. He was stretchered off the pitch while PSG suffered their fourth league defeat of the season, dropping to third place in Ligue Un.
BT Sport’s video of the incident shows the moment Neymar rolls his ankle under the pressure of Mendes’ leg.
PSG will be watching today's Champions League draw knowing they will be without Neymar for some time 😔
The Brazilian suffered a nasty-looking injury in the 96th minute after a challenge that was shown a red card after a VAR check.
Get well soon 🙏 pic.twitter.com/F5FctQB3Y0
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 14, 2020
The referee initially gave Thiago Mendes a yellow card, but after watching the incident again, changed his decision to a straight red for the Lyon midfielder. Many viewers argued the red card was harsh and might not have been given if the tackle was not made against the league’s most valuable asset.
Aside from the injury to their star player, it was a poor display from the French champions, who only managed one shot on target all game against Rudi Garcia’s Lyon side.
PSG now trail Lyon and Lille by a point, both of whom have only lost one game each in the league.
Thomas Tuchel will be confident his side can recover their form in the league and pull away from the pack, but it is the Champions League where they will miss Neymar the most.
It is not yet known how long the Brazilian will be ruled out for, but he faces a race against time to be fit for the Champions League round of 16 against his former club Barcelona, set to take place on the 16th of February.
