“The president was the first to publicly say he would be by my side”
He appreciated the support he gave him when he was accused of rape
French PSG striker Neymar juniorthanked this Saturday the president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonarofor having supported in the “most difficult” moment of his life and stated that this is one of the reasons for supporting his re-election.
“I took a stand and I never said it, but at the most difficult time of my life the president was the first to publicly say he would be by my side,” declared Neymar when opening a broadcast on YouTube with the president, scheduled to last 22 continuous hours.
“Without knowing each other personally, (Bolsonaro) he showed affection and put his chest and face forward believing in me and now I’m doing the same”, added the forward of the Brazilian team.
Without specifying which moment of his life he was referring to, Neymar reaffirmed support for Bolsonaro’s candidacywho will contest the second electoral round on October 30 against former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
In 2019, Bolsonaro publicly came out in defense of Neymar when the soccer player was accused by a Brazilian model of having raped her in a hotel in the French capital, in a case that was filed for lack of evidence.
Neymar made a call to other public figures that they will vote for Bolsonaro to openly support him in front of his followers.
Bolsonaro “is the right guy to lead our Brazil and we are seeing what he is doing and what he can still improve on. I ask young people to follow the hearts of their parents and do what they have to do for Brazil”.
“What motivated me to expose myself – to declare his support for Bolsonaro – are the values that the president preaches: family and freedoms. That is why I call on all the others who want to position themselves and have the freedom to express their feelings, “he said.
Other figures like Ronaldinho Gaucho, Felipe Melo, Rivaldo, Romario, Lucas Moura, RobinhoRenato Gaúcho and the “King” of futsal Falcao, among others, have declared their vote in favor of Bolsonaro.
“It is facing and not being afraid to fight. With Bolsonaro re-elected and Brazil champion (in the World Cup in Qatar 2022) everyone will be happy. The feeling of using our flag and our colors is a great pride.”Neymar said.
For its part, Bolsonaro thanked Neymar for his support and “example”, who, in turn, declared that when he was a child, before reaching the lower divisions of Santos, he was a fan of Palmeiras, the team of preference of the ruler.
The “Superlive of freedom”, in which artists participate for 22 hours in a rowathletes and politicians who support Bolsonaro, will be closed on Sunday by the popular singer of the sertanejo genre Gusttavo Lima, one of the most successful in public and sales.
Lula won the first round of October 2 with 48.4% of the votes compared to 43.2% for Bolsonaro, who surprised with a much better performance than projected by the polls, which now show a technical tie due to the margin of error, with 49% and 45% respectively.