Neymar’s big return to the field sets things on fire

Life without Football. For almost 370 days, Neymar Jr (32 years old) was deprived of a football. Indeed, the Brazilian seriously injured his knee last year during the match between Brazil and Uruguay. For many months, the former FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player worked to get back on the pitch and do what he loves most in the world. Then, following the information published in Saudi Arabia about him, it was thought that he would not return to the pitch before 2025. But this Monday, October 21, Ney finally played football again. Present in the Al-Hilal group, he was on the bench during the Asian Champions League match against Al-Ain.

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A first victory for the striker, who shared a moving message on his social networks before the start of the match. “I’m happy to feel like this again, a little freshness in the stomach before a match is always very good… may it be a healthy return! May God bless us and protect us.” His father, Neymar Sr, was also very moved by his son’s return. “Today is the time for you to come back. We are waiting for you on the field and we are waiting for your party.” The party started without him and Al-Hilal took the lead on the scoreboard. But in the 75th minute of play, all eyes were on the Auriverde international, who came on. A moment that was obviously eagerly awaited.

To read
Asian LoC: Neymar finally played again in Al-Hilal’s victory

The return of King Ney

The official account of the Saudi Pro League also posted a message on X. «Neymar is back» (Neymar is back, editor’s note). For his part, Al-Hilal tweeted: “get the message across. The Legend Neymar Jr is back.” On the field for 30 minutes, including stoppage time, Neymar almost scored a goal in the 87th minute on a counterattack. But that wasn’t the most important thing for the Brazilian, who was happy to play football again. Obviously, his comeback got people talking. On social networks, some reacted to the image of Rafael Leão who wrote about Instagram : “the return of football.” All accompanied by a photo of Neymar. In the press, there is also talk of the return of the Brazilian superstar.

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UOL wrote about this: “Neymar returns after 369 days with the victory of Al-Hilal in a crazy match with 9 goals (…) Neymar entered the last 15 minutes of the second half and almost scored a goal. The player barely touched the ball, but marked his return to the field 369 days after his last performance. On a counter-attack, he almost scored Al-Hilal’s sixth goal.” Lance! also ignites. “Neymar plays again in a crazy match and Al-Hilal wins in the Asian Champions League. He entered the field in the second half and ended more than a year without playing (…) The wait is over: absent since October 17, 2023, Neymar Jr. has officially returned to the field.

An expected comeback

The Globe also mentioned the subject: “the match against Al-Ain marked Neymar’s return to the field. The striker returned after 1 year of recovery from a knee injury. Ney came on after 30 minutes of play in the second half. Despite the short time spent on the pitch, the player almost scored on the left side of the attack, but the shot went wide. For its part, the newspaper Estadão wrote: “Neymar’s return to the field after a year of absence was the big news in the world of sport on Monday. All of Santos praised the Brazilian and stressed that Neymar’s return to the field was synonymous with happiness. The press is also happy. Marca followed the line of joy and wrote “smile”. Another Spanish newspaper, AS, also highlighted Neymar’s return to the field.

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Indeed, several foreign media have mentioned his return. In Spain, AS headlined: “Neymar’s magical return one year later!” before adding: “the Brazilian returned to the field during Al-Hilal’s epic Champions League victory over Al Ain, the current champions. He hadn’t played since October 17 of last year. Mark wrote: “Football is lucky. Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (Mogi das Cruzes, 1992) is back. “What I love most in life is playing football. I suffer every day from not being able to do it. That’s what hurts the most,” admitted “Ney” when announcing his return . A return now real. The former Santos, Barcelona and PSG player reappeared 371!!! days later. On October 18, 2023, during Brazil’s defeat against Uruguay (2-0), he suffered the most serious injury of his career: he tore the anterior cruciate ligament and the meniscus of his left knee. In Catalonia, Sport et Sports World are very happy with the return of Neymar. On the Saudi side, we are putting more emphasis on Al-Hilal’s performance than the return of King Ney…for the moment.