Ronaldinho aims dig at Newcastle's Bruno Guimaraes in astonishing Brazil rant

Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton’s emergence into Brazil regulars has been much to the joy of Newcastle United supporters - but Ronaldinho has been less pleased with his national side.

Ronaldinho lambasted on a brutal tirade against the quality of his national side, as he admitted he will not be watching his home nation in this summer’s CONMEBOL Copa America. There have been some suggestions the rant could be part of some sort of ad campaign, such was the surprise nature of his rant.

Newcastle United pair Bruno and Joelinton have featured often for their nation, with 17 of Bruno’s 22 appearances for The Seleção coming since his arrival on Tyneside, while Joelinton made his international debut this time last year - scoring the opener in a 4-1 win over Guinea. Brazil, though perhaps uninspiring in their one-all draw with the United States, have not lost once in their four friendlies this calendar year, making the comments by one of the nation’s greats somewhat surprising.

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The nation are preparing to begin their Copa America campaign next week, with Bruno a big part of the Brazil squad and expected to feature heavily in the tournament.

“That's it guys, that's it for me,” began the Brazilian’s Instagram post on Saturday. “This is a sad moment for those who love Brazilian football. It's difficult to find the energy to watch the games. This is perhaps one of the worst teams in recent years, it has no respectable leaders, just average players for the most part.

“I've been following football since I was a child, long before I thought about becoming a player, and I've never seen a situation as bad as this. The shirt lacks love, lacks determination and most important of all: football.

“I repeat: our performance has been one of the worst things I have ever seen. A shame. Therefore, I declare my abandonment here. I will not watch any CONMEBOL Copa América game, nor celebrate any victory.”