Brazil’s next two matches will be against Venezuela, away from home, and Uruguay, at Arena Fonte Nova

One year and four days since he was injured in a Brazilian team match, Neymar entered the field again in an official Al-Hilal match. The number 10 was listed by Jorge Jesus to help the team in the second stage of the duel with Al-Ain, in the third round of the Asian Champions League, this Monday (21). Bruna Biancardi, her girlfriend, and her daughter Mavie watched the match from the stands of the Hazza bin Zayed stadium, in the city of Al Ain, in the United Arab Emirates.

Neymar has become the biggest talk of the Seleção since the beginning of Dorival Júnior’s career in command of the team, in January. Much due to the absence of number 10 and the concern about his physical recovery, but also due to the bad phase the team is going through. There were two victories in the last FIFA Date in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers, but the early elimination in the Copa América in the quarter-finals, against Uruguay, and the performance on the field worried the CBF.

The entity’s expectation was that Neymar would be able to return from August. At the beginning of the season, however, both Al-Hilal and the CBF doctors, in a commission led by doctor Rodrigo Lasmar, realized that the attacker would not be able to take the field at that moment. He underwent surgery after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and injuring two menisci.

“We are realizing how important this player (Neymar) is. In the coming years, God willing, we will be able to enjoy one of the great players in world football in a moment that could be remarkable in his career and that of our national team”, stated Dorival Júnior, in September.

“We’ll wait, we’re patient. It doesn’t matter if it comes back in October, November or just February. You have to be confident, performing and, above all, clear of the selection. It takes time and natural procedures that are carried out.”

Dorival and the CBF’s plan was to wait for Neymar’s debut and then debate his return to the Seleção. During the last few months, Al-Hilal’s coach, Jorge Jesus, even stated that Neymar would only return to the field in 2025. So much so that the Saudi team did not sign him up to compete in the Saudi Championship until December, due to the limit of foreigners in the squad. – the club chose to keep full-back Renan Lodi, as he would be able to defend the team in the first half of the season. In the Asian Champions League, however, number 10 was able to make his debut, as there was no such restriction in the competition.

In 2023, when he had recently been hired by the Saudi club, the striker was called up by Fernando Diniz for the duels with Bolivia and Peru, in the Qualifiers. He entered the field, started and became the greatest scorer in the history of the Brazilian team, surpassing Pelé’s mark. However, the episode generated friction with Jorge Jesus and Al-Hilal.

“I don’t know why a player who is injured is in the Brazilian team’s squad. He won’t play, because he isn’t capable of playing. Nor training, let alone playing”, said the Portuguese coach at the time.

Neymar was recovering from injury after leaving Paris Saint-Germain. At the time, the team’s medical team denied that the striker would not be fit to play. “The medical department of the Brazilian men’s football team informs that it has been monitoring the clinical conditions of the player Neymar Jr for a few days. The technical committee is aware of the situation and has maintained constant contact with the athlete, monitoring his evolution”, he informed via official note.

The Brazilian team’s next matches will be in November, against Venezuela, on the 14th, and Uruguay, on the 19th, in Salvador. A call-up for Neymar will depend on the attacker’s progress in training. As he is not registered in the Saudi Championship, he can only enter the field in one more opportunity before Dorival’s next call-up, in a duel with Esteghlal, from Iran, in the Champions League.

For Al-Hilal, since being hired in 2023, Neymar played his sixth game this Monday, with a goal difference scored and two assists. During this period without Neymar, the team felt his absence: there were three defeats, six wins and five draws – a performance of 58.9%.