'I feel burdened by this situation,' Juan Zuniga said in an Instagram post. (@camilozuniga18)

'It resulted from a normal play and there was no bad intention, evil or recklessness from my part.

'I want to send a special salute to Neymar.

'I admire you, I respect you and I consider you one of the best players in the world.

'I hope you recover soon in order to continue to show us that in football there is a sport full of virtue and qualities, which I have put into practice since I was 12 years old and as a professional player.'

Zuniga also expressed gratitude to the Brazilian fans.

He said: 'To the Brazilian fans that have lost one of their players in the World Cup, I thank them for all the support they have given our national team in every game we have played here.'

Delia Fischer, FIFA's head of media said: 'The disciplinary committee is analysing the matter. The spirit of fair play is very important and we want to avoid difficult things on the field of play.'

Nevertheless, Brazil's Football Federation had also plead for action against Zuniga but was rejected by FIFA's disciplinary committee, who insisted the referee had seen the incident.

"After an analysis of the matter and the extensive submission and documentation received from the CBF, the chairman came to the conclusion that the FIFA disciplinary committee cannot consider this matter in light of the conditions outlined in the FIFA disciplinary code... to be able to intervene in such a situation."

The statement read: "The chairman of the FIFA disciplinary committee deeply regrets the incident and the serious consequences on Neymar's health.

"No retrospective action can be taken... since the incident involving the Colombian player Juan Camilo Zuniga Mosquera did not escape the match officials' attention.

"The conditions by which the FIFA disciplinary committee can intervene in any incident have to be considered independently of the consequences of that incident, such as an unfortunate injury suffered by a player.

"We wish Neymar a prompt and complete recovery as we wish the same for all players who have sadly been ruled out of the World Cup through injury."

With reports from: dailymail.co.uk/ independent.co.uk