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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Colin Millar

Neymar leaks private WhatsApp chat with Gigio Donnarumma after rumours of furious spat

Neymar has moved to deny reports that he shared an angry confrontation with Paris Saint-Germain teammate Gianluigi Donnarumma.

PSG were left stunned as they were eliminated from the Champions League on Wednesday night against Real Madrid with a late collapse in the game.

A quickfire second half hat-trick from Karim Benzema turned the tie in the hosts' favour with a comeback described as "magic" by home boss Carlo Ancelotti.

There were question marks over visiting goalkeeper Donnarumma for Benzema's first goal, with the Italian losing possession to the striker in the build-up.

Meanwhile, the move for the French forward's second began when Neymar gifted the ball to Luka Modric in Madrid's half as the visitors lost control of the game.

Have Your Say! Will Mauricio Pochettino be sacked by PSG this season? Tell us what you think here.

Donnarumma made the crucial first error under pressure from Benzema (Getty Images)

That led to Marca reporting on an alleged confrontation between the two teammates with Neymar said to have criticised Donnarumma for his mistake, and the Euro 2020 winner responding by pointing out the Brazilian's part in the goal, which levelled things up on aggregate.

The report continued that the pair "almost came to blows," with others in the dressing room forced to step in to prevent things escalating further.

However, Neymar has moved to outright reject the reports of a rift by sharing a private WhatsApp conversation between the duo.

The conversation starts off with Italian goalkeeper Donnarumma sharing the link to the report with Neymar.

The former Milan shot-stopper starts off by apologising for his mistake on the pitch before saying that such a report was 'unacceptable', suggesting that it was not true.

Neymar shared the WhatsApp conversation with Donnarumma (@FabrizioRomano/Twitter)

Donnarumma wrote: "Hey Ney, sorry about yesterday. This news is unacceptable."

That led to Neymar responding: "Mate! It's ok! That can happen in football…we are a team and we are with you. You are still very young and you have already achieved so much. Stand up and keep going! A hug"

L'Equipe's player ratings for the second leg laid the blame at the feet of PSG's goalkeeper and centre-backs, with Donnarumma given a 2/10 rating.

Pochettino was slammed by the French press for his role in the defeat (Getty Images)

Marquinhos was also awarded 2/10 after his attempted clearance set up Benzema for the winner less than a minute after the Frenchman's second goal, while fellow central defender Presnel Kimpembe got a 3/10 rating.

Pochettino was handed a 4/10 after his team's collapse, but the Argentinean coach pointed the blame at referee Danny Makkelie after what he considered a foul by Benzema on Donnarumma before the 61st-minute goal.

While PSG are 13 points clear at the top of Ligue 1, this represents a season-defining moment with such a failure in Europe likely to be deemed as entirely unacceptable by the club.

Earlier this year, the club were eliminated from the Coupe de France after losing a penalty shootout to Nice.

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