After missing 17 months due to a knee injury he suffered against Uruguay in October 2023, Neymar was scheduled to return to the Selecao. However, the 33-year-old has now suffered yet another setback, being disqualified from the qualifiers against Argentina and Colombia.
“The return seemed so close, but unfortunately I won’t be able to wear the most important jersey in the world for the moment,” he wrote on Instagram.
“We had long conversations and everyone knows of my desire to return, but we agreed that it’s best not to take any risks and prepare as best as possible to completely eradicate the injury.”
Neymar returned to his boyhood club, Santos, in January after a challenging stint with Saudi Pro League team Al-Hilal. In seven games in the Brazilian top division, he has scored three goals and contributed three assists.
Neymar (128) is Brazil’s record scorer with 79 goals, two more than Pele, and only Cafu (142) has more caps for his country. In addition, Brazil’s head coach Dorival Jr. summoned up Lyon goalie Lucas Perri to replace teammate Danilo with Ederson of Manchester City and Alex Sandro of Flamengo.
This season, 18-year-old Endrick has made 28 appearances for Real Madrid in all competitions, tallying six goals. He has three goals in his 13 senior Brazil games.
Neymar Jr. close to reuniting with Messi and Suarez
It’s interesting to note that this incident happened at the same time as an odd, long-standing custom. Neymar virtually never skips games that fall on his sister Rafaella’s March 11 birthday. The fact that this has occurred ten times in the previous eleven seasons has stoked conspiracy ideas among viewers.
Neymar will now have extra time to recuperate and get ready for the Brazilian national team’s forthcoming games against Colombia and Argentina in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers after Santos was eliminated from the campaign.
