ALVES STICKS UP FOR YOUNGSTERS

The Barcelona defender Dani Alves has said that the Brazilian fans should not be criticising the team if they have a bad performance. Instead, they should at least be praising and encouraging the youngsters within the squad.

Brazil will be hosting the 2014 FIFA World Cup. As a result, there is a lot of pressure in the football crazy nation for them to lift the trophy in their own backyard. Dani Alves acknowledges that it certainly will not be easy especially given that the home support, which is expected to provide a lot of stick if something goes wrong, will not be able to motivate them.

Brazil were unable to perform at their best in the recent friendly match against South Africa. Even though they won the match 1-0, the performance was certainly not enough for the Brazil fans. They constantly criticised the players throughout the match, which has been the topic of discussion with the Barcelona defender Dani Alves after the match. He has said that the fans should not be criticising, but should be motivating the players in order to get the best out of them. He has also said that the younger players like Neymar and Oscar should be heavily motivated.

"I have nothing against the fans of São Paulo. I meant only that our best player [Neymar], our franchise player, our player that can make the difference, needs to be handled with care. Supporters have every right to complain, but they need to understand that our best player has to be treated with more care. It's a very young group that has had to deal with too much pressure. As one more experienced, I have to act to protect them, [Fans] have to cheer them instead of criticising them," said Dani Alves after the match.