Brazilian great Neymar finally made his return to the World Cup stage as his country beat Scotland in Miami.
The 34-year-old missed Brazil’s first two games due to injury but made it off the bench as Carlo Ancelotti’s side cruised to a 3-0 victory over the Tartan Army.
Neymar’s mere inclusion in the Brazil squad has been the subject of much debate. The Santos star hadn’t played for his country since October 2023 and has been injured since May.
Still, the former Barcelona star was handed a 15-minute runout against the Scots and provided a positive update on his fitness after.
Neymar says he’s feeling good after injury
Speaking after the win over Scotland that sent Brazil through as group winners, Neymar said (via FIFA’s official website): “I feel good physically, thanks to God. It was hard to be away from the pitch for this long, but I wasn’t completely inactive.
“I’ve been training hard for 25 days to be in good shape for these matches. So I’m very happy, very satisfied. I felt a mix of emotions when I came on.
“It’s been a long time since I last wore this shirt, a long time since I last played for the national team, but thanks to God everything worked out and I managed to come back.”
It remains to be seen just how much he features going forward, however.
Brazil’s frontline is packed with talent and it is hard to imagine Neymar, despite all of his achievements, suddenly breaking into the team on a regular basis.
With the group stages now over, Ancelotti clearly needs to play his strongest possible team.
Neymar clearly doesn’t feature in that at this stage of his career. While the player remains a huge fan favourite, Neymar himself has admitted that Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr is now Brazil’s brightest star.
Not a single player in Brazil’s proud soccer history has scored more goals than Neymar (79).
The World Cup, however, is the one major trophy to have so far eluded one of the best talents of his generation.
As such, even playing a supporting role in what would be a record-extending sixth Brazilian title would complete his career at international level.
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