As the final whistle blew in the Saint Petersburg Stadium after Brazil’s second group game, the television cameras panned towards the centre circle, focusing on the slight, attenuated figure huddled on the perfect playing surface. There was no doubt about who it was – the Selecao number 10 is instantly recognisable to anyone in the world with even a passing interest in football – but what he was doing was not immediately clear. It is common for Brazilians to kneel in prayer after games, especially ones as tense as the Selecao’s 2-0 win over Costa Rica. But as they zoomed in, it became clear that Neymar was weeping into his hands, apparently overcome by the emotion of the occasion, the two late strikes that won the game for the team, the joy of scoring for the first time since his comeback from a long injury lay-off. It was a peculiar sight – an intriguing, deliberately theatrical end to a match that had been full of temper and frayed nerves, tantrums and irritation. Assuming the tears were real (and in this author’s inconsequential opinion, they were), the mere fact of him crying was not that notable. Such a relief of pressure, both internal and external, is powerful. But where he chose to cry seemed significant. In the middle of the pitch, with the world’s eyeballs pointed in his direction, it appeared a calculated move, designed to draw the attention of the media to the fact that he had scored, that he is back. If that was the aim, then his actions were a rip-roaring success. Newspapers, television stations, and social media sites spoke of little else in the subsequent 24 hours, much of the response negative in tone. Neymar himself responded to some of the more critical comments in an Instagram post, saying that “Not everybody knows what I have been through to get here… The tears were of joy, of having overcome, of desire and will to win.” But it was not just the considered sobbing; even before that, everybody’s focus had been firmly on Brazil’s star man. Like in the Selecao’s first outing against Switzerland, he was the most fouled player on the pitch. And just like in that first game, he let the provocation affect him. He was booked for slamming the ball to the floor in exasperation, he threw himself around under pressure from the Costa Rican defenders and tried to win a spot kick with a dramatic hand gesture and exaggerated fall. Whether it was a penalty or not is debatable, but his reputation certainly influenced the final, VAR-assisted decision. When it comes to referees, Neymar is the boy who cried wolf.