The former French world champion and current consultant for Prime Video, Thierry Henry, would like to see the taboo of the mental health of football players broken. While being aware of the difficulty of the task.
Arsenal legend and former French national star Thierry Henry has raised concerns regarding Brazilian star Neymar’s mental health as the 30-year old’s performances have been extremely poor recently and he has often failed to make a meaningful impact on the game.
The Paris-Saint Germain (PSG) forward also had another poor outing in the Ligue 1 giants’ 1-0 defeat against Nice on Sunday as he just had one shot in the game.
Thierry Henry concerned about Neymar’s mental health
While speaking to L’Equipe about Neymar’s performances, Thierry Henry said, “When you analyse an action and he doesn’t position himself properly, okay, that’s a fact and you have to recognise that. Yes, he hasn’t been as good, but there are reasons. Neymar has often talked in his recent interviews about his well-being, about the pressure, so my first thought is: ‘Is he alright?’. It’s not about him not doing nutmegs, sombreros, or about the fact that he doesn’t beat people with his pace anymore. He talks, but can you hear him? He’s asking for help – there are things going on in his head, like any human being.”
The Brazilian international is perhaps having one of his worst seasons at PSG as he has scored only four goals and four assists in 18 appearances across all competitions. Moreover, the 30-year old forward has missed about 18 games owing to injury concerns. Henry is possibly referring to Neymar’s interview to DAZN last year when the Brazilian said that the 2022 World Cup could be his last because he did not know if he had the strength to continue playing football.
In the interview given to DAZN, Neymar said, “I think it’s my last World Cup [in 2022]. I see it as my last because I don’t know if I have the strength of mind to deal with football anymore.” Meanwhile, in another interview, Neymar also cited his interest in playing in the United States as the demands are lesser than that of the European season, giving him more time for a vacation.
The 30-year old told the Fenomenos podcast last month, “I’d love to play in the U.S., actually. I’d love to play there at least for a season. Their season is shorter, so I’d get three months’ vacation.” It will be a real shame if the PSG star were to quit football soon after he smashed the football transfer record in August 2017 for his star-studded ability. PSG paid Barcelona a staggering €222 million to sign the Brazilian.
Source: L’Equipe
