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Lionel Messi: Barcelona star was mocked by Neymar after Argentina penalty miss - report
LIONEL MESSI was reportedly mocked by former Barcelona star Neymar after his penalty miss for Argentina against Iceland.
Messi fired Barcelona to La Liga glory last term but toiled as Argentina drew 1-1 with Iceland in their World Cup opener.
Sergio Aguero and Alfreo Finnbogason had traded blows before the Barcelona star was denied by Hannes Por Halldorsson.
Neymar himself struggled for Brazil, failing to sparkle as they were held by Switzerland yesterday evening.
But Spanish outlet Don Balon say the PSG forward mocked Lionel Messi for his woes prior to his own outing.
In the build-up to the game, Neymar was adamant Messi, and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo, were from a different world.
"The two who are above all others right now are Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi,” he said.
"For all modesty, today I am the best player in the world — because they are from another planet."
Messi’s poor display, however, has seen him criticised.
And Don Balon say Neymar mocked his old rival after his Argentina woes.
Meanwhile, Messi has apologised for the missed penalty, admitting he was hurting inside.
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“Obviously it hurts me to have missed the penalty,” he said after the match.
“We have the bitterness of not being able to take the three points that we deserved.
“To start with winning is always important, now we have to think about Croatia.
“We will try to pass this quickly.”