The Brazilian star Neymar returned to the fields with the Santos FCthe club where he began his career, after several weeks out due to surgery on his left knee. The 34-year-old striker came off the bench in the second half of the match against Velo Clube in the Paulista championship, which ended with a 6-0 victory for Santos.
With the final whistle, Santos confirmed its qualification for the Paulista quarterfinals and will face Novorizontino, leader of the first phase of the championship. The match will be played inside São Paulo, with the rival at home.
In his first appearance since December 2025, Neymar showed flashes of brilliance in a match that was already 3-0 at half-time. The former Barcelona player had a difficult season with Santos due to recurring injurieshaving arrived at the club after leaving Al-Hilal last year. However, he played a key role in avoiding relegation. In addition, he reached an agreement to extend his contract with Santos until the end of 2026.
Neymar, the Seleção’s all-time top scorer (79 goals, two more than Pelé), has not played for the national team for more than two years. His last appearance with the Brazilian shirt was on October 17, 2023, when he suffered a serious knee injury against Uruguay.
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The former FC Barcelona and PSG player has not yet been called up by the new Brazilian coach, the Italian Carlo Ancelotti, who took over the reins of the five-time world champion in June. Brazil will play its first match on June 13, 2026 against Morocco, before facing Haiti on the 19th and Scotland on the 24th. The Seleção will first play France and Croatia in two friendlies in the United States in March.
