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South America insight
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Carlo Ancelotti’s decision to name Neymar in his Brazil squad for the World Cup certainly raised eyebrows, especially after he was ruled out of their opening two games. The 34-year-old is the Seleção’s all-time record goalscorer, eclipsing the legendary Pelé, and he enjoys hero status in the most iconic footballing nation in the planet. At the peak of his powers, Neymar was one of the best players in the world but his career has plummeted in recent years, due to injuries and the pursuit of finances over glory.
Winning the World Cup is the pinnacle for any Brazilian football and Neymar has experienced significant heartbreak in failing to achieve his ultimate goal. Ancelotti, however, has afforded the uniquely gifted attacker one last dance on the biggest stage and he will return from injury in Brazil’s final group game against Scotland. “He is available, he trained very well this week,” said Ancelotti. “He is fit and able and ready to play. We are very happy he is back. He is a high-quality player. He can play from half-time or the whole 90 minutes. He is very well, he worked very hard, so he is ready.” While Neymar is unquestionably a faded force, the Golden Boy of Brazilian football has an excellent record in major tournaments and Ancelotti will hope there’s a sprinkling of magic left in his boots.
Neymar’s impressive record in major tournaments
Pelé, Zico, Romário, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cafu - the list of iconic Brazilian players is endless but Neymar sits amongst the pantheon of greats from the South American superpower. The Santos star is Brazil’s record goalscorer with 79 goals in 128 appearances, which eclipses the legendary Pele’s record of 77. Affectionately known as the king, Pele led Brazil to World Cup glory in 1958, 1962 and 1970 as part of some of the best international sides in history. While that feat has evaded Neymar, his record in World Cups is very impressive and a major factor as to why Ancelotti took the risk of calling him up.
As the graphic above illustrates, Neymar has scored eight goals and provided four assists across 13 appearances at the most prestigious tournament in football. When you break that down, Neymar has contributed 0.91 goal contributions per 90 minutes and he’s only ever lost one game in regular time at the World Cup. Moreover, Brazil’s talisman also boasts an impressive record in the Copa América with nine goal contributions in 12 games. While Neymar can’t perform at the levels he used to and he won’t be a starter for Brazil in the knockout stages, Ancelotti believes he could represent the ace up his sleeve to produce a moment of magic when they need a goal. To gain expert insight into Neymar, we spoke to Marcos Watts, Transfermarkt’s Area Manager for Brazil.
The view from Brazil on Neymar
There’s a sense of uncertainty around Neymar. People have had mixed feelings about him for quite some time, and even more since his pre-World Cup injury. While many people aren’t fully convinced he’ll be the game-changer for Brazil, I believe the team needs that spark of creativity in attack and this could be Neymar’s chance to show he’s still a top-tier player despite his physical limitations. Brazil will definitely feel the absence of Raphinha, who’s injured, and that might be the perfect opening for Neymar to step up and shine again.
Neymar has always been a standout performer for Brazil in major tournaments. So he’s exactly that kind of difference-maker: a star player people expect to shine every time he steps onto the pitch. Now, it all comes down to whether he’ll sign off on a high note or if this World Cup marks a potential bittersweet ending to his career with Brazil.
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