FORTALEZA, Brazil - Football great Pele insists he supports the Brazilian popular protests sweeping the country, as long as theyre peaceful. Daniel Sorensen Jersey . Pele was criticized online for telling Brazilians to forget about the nationwide demonstrations and focus on cheering on the national team, but he said he was never against the movement. He said in a television interview that the country should only "think about the national team," prompting Brazilians to flood social media sites to mock his comments. Pele had expressed support for the protests in the same interview, but only the part in which he told Brazilians to "forget about this mess that is happening in Brazil" went viral. Brazil has been swept by massive demonstrations that have sent hundreds of thousands of people into the streets denouncing poor public services, government corruption and even the billions spent in the country to host the Confederations Cup, the World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. Former Brazil star Ronaldo was also criticized recently after a 2011 video in which he said that "you cant host a World Cup by building hospitals" resurfaced on social media websites after the protests began. A member of the local World Cup organizing committee, Ronaldo has also had to defend himself. "It was a different context," he said. "Its not fair to use that as if it was said this week." Peles comments were made just before Brazil beat Mexico 2-0 in its second match at the Confederations Cup, a World Cup warm-up tournament among continental champions. "Lets forget about this mess that is happening in Brazil and lets think about the national team, which is our country, our blood," Pele told Globo TV. "Lets not jeer the Selecao, lets support it until the end." His other comments in the same interview didnt make it to social media protests. "There are a lot of bad characters taking advantage of this opportunity and they are hurting these peaceful protests which have been calling for what is best for the Brazilian people," he said. "I think we cant allow these bandits and bad characters to get in the way of this opportunity to make demands for our country." A World Cup ambassador, Pele was forced to release a statement saying that he was only against the jeering of the national team and violent protests. Brazilian fans had been loudly criticizing Brazil and jeering the squad after disappointing results in recent matches. There were clashes between police and protesters before some Confederations Cup matches, but inside the stadiums Brazil has received the full support of the local fans. Players said they were moved when the crowd kept singing the national anthem even after the music was cut short before the match on Wednesday at the Arena Castelao in Fortaleza, saying that it made them more motivated. "It was moving to see the attitude of the fans," Brazil assistant coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said. "Very few times weve seen that. They supported us from the start. It was impressive to see how the players were moved by what happened during the national anthem." ___ Follow Tales Azzoni at http://twitter.com/tazzoni Damien Williams Jersey . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. Priest Holmes Jersey .com) - Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer were easy first-round winners Tuesday at the Australian Open. http://www.customchiefsjersey.com/custom...large-386n.html . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up.Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce feels the pressure is on them and not opponents Leicester going into their Super Sunday clash at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats have drawn their last four matches in a row and go into the weekend four points behind Norwich, who play Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday. Ed Chamberlin and Paul Merson look ahead to Super Sunday as leaders Leicester travel to Sunderland and Tottenham entertain Manchester United In contrast, Leicester are top of the table and pushing for their first Premier League title. Allardyce described their rise from relegation candidates last season to contenders this as Roy of the Rovers stuff, but he still feels his side has what it takes to defeat them.I hope we can perform this week like we did the last. Hopefully that will be enough to bring us our biggest three points of the season against the side at the top of the league who deserve to be where they are, he said.It would only be their fourth defeat. Hopefully we can be clinical enough. We are capable of doing it, I feel. Its Roy of the Rovers stuff for those that are old like me who remember Roy of the Rovers. Its a fairytale. After our game, I hope they continue to go on and win. But I hope we can stop them in their tracks first.Theres a lot more pressure on us than them, theres no doubt about that, with the position were in. Weve been able to handle that pressure very well in performance terms.Its a much bigger game for us than them on the basis of our Premier League status. It would still be an outstanding season if they finished second and not first.Its been interesting to see theyve mastered change of the tactics as the seasons gone on. When I was watching them in the early part they were much more open and counter attacking, which brought them lots of goals and comebacks. Charlie Nicholas reflects on Sunderlands draw with West Brom Now theyve mastered the way the opposition have set themselves upp against them, dropping deeper and not allowing the space. Tony Gonzalez Jersey. . Theyve still managed to break them down for the all-important 1-0s. The clean sheet ratio is fantastic too and thats why theyre at the top.If we are going to beat them we cant afford to miss the chances we had last week [when they drew 0-0 with West Brom], nor the chances Southampton made against them last week.Thats going to be very important for us. We have to try and be the team that scores first. When they score first, they are very difficult to break down. Theyre magnificent defensively.Allardyce and his coaching staff took the squad training on Sunderlands beaches this week and he felt altering their routine was helpful. Theres a lot more pressure on us than them, theres no doubt about that, with the position were in. Sam Allardyce A change of scenery is something we thought we needed. Although we have a fantastic facility here, you can get cocooned in it sometimes, he added.A fresh outlook was needed and quite a lot of our fans walking along didnt expect it and enjoyed watching, as did the players.The wet sand was actually a perfect surface for the players. The only thing we were missing was a good packet of fish and chips, which they cant have now. We could, but they cant.The Sunderland squad were also joined in training by their U8s side this week, who helped add an extra dimension to proceedings. Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce found their 0-0 draw against West Brom tough to take after a team display he described as magnificent The U8s were absolutely tremendous. There were such a lot of great little characters, who were not shy about telling the players what some of their dads had said about them, which was quite funny, said Allardyce.Its a huge commitment [to develop young players] but we take it upon ourselves that its the only way we can develop top level footballers now.But it needs a big effort from everybody and most importantly from the parents and the youngsters themselves. We try and make it as enjoyable as possible and training with the first team certainly sent them all home happy.Watch Sunderland v Leicester on Sunday. Coverage begins on Sky Sports 1 HD at 12:30pm, followed on the same channel by Tottenham v Manchester United at 3:30pm.By purchasing a Sky Sports Day Pass for £6.99 or Sky Sports Week Pass for £10.99, you can enjoy access to all seven Sky Sports channels and watch on a TV with a NOW TV Box or on a range of devices. 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