Neymar sends message to Vinicius Jr after Real Madrid star copies celebration at Copa America
Brazil all-time top scorer Neymar has reacted to his teammate, Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior, copying his goal celebration. The incident happened in the Selecao's 4-1 Copa America 2024 win over Paraguay in Nevada on Friday (June 28).
Following a listless goalless stalemate in their campaign opener, Dorival Junior's side burst into life with a commanding victory over their Latin American neighbours.
Vinicius, 23, got the ball rolling by breaking the deadlock in the 35th minute before putting his team three goals to the good deep in first half stoppage time after Savio had made it 2-0.
Omar Alderete pulled one back for Paraguay three mintues after the break. But Lucas Paqueta buried a 65th-minute spot-kick after missing one earlier in the game to restore the Selecao's three-goal lead, with Paraguay's hopes of a comeback exacerbated by Andres Cubas' 81st-minute dismissal.
Meanwhile, Vinicius celebrated one of his goals with a trademark Neymar celebration, cupping his hands to his ears and putting his tongue out. Neymar saw the funny side of it, juxtaposing a picture of his goal celebration and Vinicius' and captioning it (as translated from Portuguese):
"Congratulations for today"
Here's the screenshot of his story and his caption in Portuguese:
The Real Madrid striker, for his part, responded with 'my idol' to Neymar's comment:
The Selecao next take on Colombia in their final group game on July 1 in Santa Clara, California, knowing that a win will take them to the quarterfinals as group winners.
"I want to improve a lot to help the national team" - Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior and Neymar's international teammate
Vinicius Junior claimed modestly after Brazil's rousing win over Paraguay at the Copa America that he's far from the finished article as he focussed on returning the Selecao back to one of the game's elite sides.
Dorival Junior's side have stuttered in recent competitive games, ending a five-game winless streak - losing three - before their victory over Paraguay. All three losses came in succession in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, including a first-home loss in a World Cup qualifier, a 1-0 loss to defending champions Argentina.
However, Vinicius has put his team back on the winning trail and on the cusp of the Copa knockouts. Coming off a La Liga-UEFA Champions League double with Real Madrid, the striker said (as per Madrid Xtra):
“From the level that I am at, I know that I can improve a lot in order to help the national team. We want to put Brazil in the position it deserves.”
The Real Madrid striker has five goals and as many assists in 32 games for the Selecao.