Brazilian star Neymar suffered a new injury in his second appearance after recovering from a severe knee injury that kept him out of the field for more than a year, in the match between his Saudi team Al Hilal and its guest Esteghlal Tehran (3-0) on Monday in Riyadh in the fourth round of the League competition. Asian Elite Football Champions.
Neymar entered in the 58th minute instead of Abdullah Al-Hamdan, but his Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus was forced to replace him with Mohammed Al-Qahtani three minutes before the end of regular time due to him suffering from a muscle injury.
Neymar appeared angry after returning to the bench and threw his shin guards away, but he left the field without any assistance from the medical staff before giving his shirt to one of the visiting team players.
Neymar, who was registered only in the continental competition, returned to action last October 21 when he also came on as a substitute, specifically in the 77th minute in the match against host Al Ain, the UAE champion (4-3) in the third round.
Neymar was absent from the Brazilian national team’s squad for its matches against Venezuela and Uruguay, scheduled for November 14 and 19, after coach Dorival Junior “decided not to call him up and rush things.”
He added, “Initially, he fully recovered, but he played only a few minutes, which greatly influenced the decision.”
Neymar, the top scorer in the history of the Brazilian national team (79 goals in 128 international matches) and the most expensive player in the world, last carried his country’s colors on October 17, 2023, when he suffered an injury to his left knee.
Dorival continued, “He wanted to be here, but they understood the situation, his condition, the few minutes of participation (13).”
Neymar will have to wait until March 2025, when Brazil will face Colombia and Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers.
