Neymar said he was “not 100 percent” after his team beat Liverpool 2-1 in Champions League Group C on Wednesday to go second ahead of the final round of fixtures.
The Brazil international, who scored the second goal for Thomas Tuchel’s men, had picked up a knock in a friendly last week and fought to be fit enough to feature this midweek along with Kylian Mbappe, who was also hurt in a friendly for France over the international break.
Speaking in the Parc des Princes mixed zone after the final whistle, Neymar said that he was not at optimum level fitness-wise.
“I was not 100 percent but this was an important match,” said the 26-year-old. “Injured or not, there was no way I was missing it.
“This was a real battle. I am very happy that we won — we showed great spirit, which was crucial to our victory. We showed everyone that we are determined to go as far as possible in the Champions League.”
Neymar is now the all-time top Brazilian goal scorer in Champions League history with his 31st continental strike to overtake Kaka, which he recognised as something special.
“It is a source of great joy,” the former Barcelona man said. “I am very proud, and I hope to keep scoring.”
PSG coach Thomas Tuchel was pleased with Neymar and his teammates for the performance that they managed to produce under significant pressure.
“This was our chance to match a team like Liverpool,” said the German manager. “We have incredible mentality and we had to show fight and play good football — we had waited for that and did just that.
“We were energetic and worked hard as a team. Our attitude and work ethic were great. We won an intense and important game.”
PSG chairman and CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi praised Tuchel’s role in the win and hailed him as “the best coach in the world” before expressing his satisfaction about answering his club’s critics.
“Thomas, for me, is the best coach in the world,” Al-Khelaifi said. “He proved it here — what he did was beautiful.
“I am very happy. We played very well — as we wanted. We showed what we can do, what our great players are capable of and how we are a real team. We answered our critics who ask where we are for big matches.
“Yes, we want to win the Champions League. However, we do not want to say it like that. We need to win our matches and we want to win every single game.”
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