Romario tears into Endrick after Brazil World Cup exit

Brazil legend Romario launched a scathing attack on teenage striker Endrick after the Selecao crashed out of the World Cup at the hands of Norway, refusing to accept age as an excuse for a glaring miss. Carlo Ancelotti's side fell 2-1 in the round of 16, undone by an Erling Haaland double that sent the Norwegians into the quarterfinals. But the scoreline could have been different had Endrick converted a clear chance late on. The 19-year-old substitute, sent on to rescue the game, fired wide from a promising position. Endrick, who spent the second half of last season on loan at a Ligue 1 club after failing to establish himself at Real Madrid under Xabi Alonso, had become a social media phenomenon for the lengths Ancelotti appeared to go to avoid using him. When he finally got his chance, he came up short. Romario, the 1994 World Cup winner, did not hold back. “A lot of people are saying, 'Oh, but he's young.' F*** that he's young, he has to score the damn goal. Young, average, old, who cares,” the former striker said on 'Romario TV'. “If he’s there, he has the responsibility to score, there’s no away around it. Endrick’s mistake in missing the target was his own fault. When he gets there, he has to concentrate to score, because it’s a decisive chance, one that will define a match. I like him. I think he’s going to be a player who will bring us happiness, but on Sunday, he was terrible.” Romario also turned his fire on Ancelotti, questioning the decision to replace Bruno Guimaraes with Ederson and slamming the squad selection. “He takes Bruno Guimaraes off and puts Ederson on, why? I want to understand what he was trying to do with that mess,” Romario fumed. “We don't have a full-back because he didn't call up anyone. We had a full-back, he got injured, he called up a centre-back. He called up Wesley, he got injured, he should have brought someone else. I know there's no full-back, but there's someone better than Ederson to play at full-back!” Brazil’s exit at the last-16 stage is the nation’s worst performance in the competition since 1990.