He didn’t make disconcerting dribbles.
Didn’t articulate offensive plays.
He wasn’t even able to pose any danger from set pieces.
It was privileged in the Vojvoda scheme.
He was the only one who didn’t have to score.
He had the full support of the passionate Santos fans.
His family was at the stadium.
Even Taffarel, Ancelotti’s goalkeeping coach, was there.
Not just to pay attention to Hugo and Brazão.
He also observed the Santos 10 shirt media player.
He lost the ball five times for trying to dribble when his teammates were free.
He was disarmed on the ball.
He missed nine of 29 passes.
He only suffered three fouls.
He shot three times, only once hitting the goal.
No rhythm, no breath, he got tired.
It was 30 degrees in Santos.
From 20 minutes into the second half, it started.
The only thing he did useful for Santos was to take a hit to the shin, in a childish, unacceptable move by Gabriel Paulista from Corinthians.
The ball fell to Gabigol to score the equalizer. And that’s it.
But there was a sinister culprit for Neymar’s poor football.
The Vila Belmiro lawn, which was not irrigated.
“We had everything to make a much better game. It’s something that we players don’t have control over, but our directors and our board do, which is the field.
“A day of the classic cannot allow the irrigation system to break and a game like this to be slow, bad for us. I spoke to all of them. It’s their responsibility to take care of the field.”
Neymar’s outburst had an obvious reason.
He knows he’s not technically well.
Not even physically, he couldn’t handle the pace of the game.
If it were any other athlete, they would be replaced.
From 20 minutes into the second half, he clearly saved himself.
In the previous 65 minutes, he showed a lot of haste and omission. He didn’t ‘call the game’, that is, he wasn’t the man to take the technical lead of the match.
At 34 years old, muscle explosion is not the same.
Even more so for him, who has 44 injuries and five surgeries in his career.
And he returned from 15 days to recover his muscles, after two complete matches in a row.
He knows he is on the shortlist for the friendlies, as has happened since Ancelotti took over.
But that doesn’t mean it will be on the list.
Neymar gained a greater chance, with Rodrygo’s injury, who will no longer play in 2026, missing the World Cup.
There is so much political pressure to call up the Santos player that the president of the CBF, Samir Xaud, had to deny a few times that he had asked Ancelotti to call up Neymar.
If it is due to external pressure, Santos’ number 10 has a chance of being called up.
If it’s for football…
If it’s for justice…
If Ancelotti keeps his word, to take those who are playing best, when he calls…
Neymar will not be on this list…
The texts published here do not reflect necessarily the opinion of the Record Group.
