Colombia's Juan Zuniga received a flood of death
threats and racist abuse on social media Saturday as Brazilians reacted
angrily to his tournament-ending foul on star forward Neymar.
"Zuniga" was trending on Twitter and messages included a torrent of
abusive comment aimed at the Napoli defender after he kneed Neymar in
the back, fracturing a vertebrae.
Among the less offensive posts, contributors called the 28-year-old a
"monster" and the "biggest villain in the history of football".
Zuniga earlier said he did not mean to hurt Neymar in the challenge,
which came towards the end of a combative match which saw 54 fouls.
"I never wanted to hurt the player. When I'm on the pitch, I do
everything to defend my country and the shirt I wear, but always without
intent to injure anybody," he told Globo TV.
"It was a match both teams wanted to win. It got a bit heated. There
were strong tackles but the Brazilians were doing the same. It's normal.
I didn't make that challenge trying to break his spine. I was defending
my country.
"It's a very sad thing. I hope, with the help of God that it's not
too serious because everyone knows he's a great talent for Brazil."
Source: AFP
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