🔗 Share this article Brazil's Unquestioned Star? Neymar's World Cup Race Against Time While Ousmane Dembele claimed the 2025 Ballon d'Or in late September, Neymar was lying in bed for his third injury of the year - while engaging in an virtual card tournament. The 33-year-old Brazilian ace eventually placed as second place, securing around seventy-three thousand pounds in prize money. It was partial comfort on a day when he had to observe the player who previously succeeded him at Barcelona receive the award he had long hoped to win. After coming back to his boyhood club Santos in January, the experienced attacker has fallen short of expectations, attracting more attention for similar incidents than for his on-field performances. His homecoming after a dozen campaigns away was meant to be a chance for him to regain his form and, crucially, revive a passion for the game that seemed gone after frustrating spells with Paris St-Germain and the Saudi club. Instead, it has been generally unsatisfactory for all parties involved. Such is the situation that the main question being asked right now in Brazil is if Neymar will participate in the upcoming global tournament. He's running out of time. "All players have to prove that they are ready. The deadline approaches [for him]," 1970 World Cup-winner Tostao wrote in his regular feature. On midweek, Brazil manager the Italian tactician disclosed his squad for the upcoming games against South Korea and Japan and, once again, Neymar was excluded. "O Principe", as he was nicknamed when welcomed back at Santos in a reference to the king Pele, is yet to play under Ancelotti, having been missing from the national team for two years. He continues to be an fitness concern for the autumn fixtures, which, in the worst scenario, will leave him with only two friendly matches in March 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the revealing of the final list for the World Cup. "For 15 years, Neymar was Brazil's unquestioned talisman, bearing massive pressure on his own," former AC Milan and Roma legend Cafu remarked. "But no one wins the World Cup alone. Placing all our expectations on him at the present time is problematic because he struggles to even play three games in a row." 'If Neymar is left out for technical reasons, something isn't right' Not only has Neymar had repeated injury problems since his return to Brazil - he's missed 47% of Santos' matches this campaign - but, when he was able to play, he was a distant from the player who during his zenith rivaled Lionel Messi and the Portuguese icon. Of his nine goal contributions so far, five have come against teams from lower tiers than Brazil's first division - a goal and assist against a lower-league side, followed by a three goal involvements versus Inter de Limeira, all in the Sao Paulo State Championship. As Santos battle against demotion in the Brazilian first tier, the playmaker no longer seems to be the decisive factor he previously represented. Nevertheless, Ancelotti has insisted that the forward has plenty of time to show he is ready for the World Cup. "His aim must be to be prepared in summer. It isn't crucial if he's in the squad in October, November or spring," the Italian told French media. Ancelotti stirred local controversy last month by reportedly trying to protect Neymar, claiming the star had been omitted from the team over physical condition issues. But then Neymar himself disputed it, saying he "was left out for technical reasons; it has nothing to do with my fitness level." In terms of public perception, it certainly didn't make it any better for Neymar. "If the player we have invested our faith in to deliver the World Cup is left out for performance issues, clearly something isn't right," Cafu said. Can Neymar follow Ronaldo's 2002 example? Research from Datafolha found that Brazilians are split over whether Neymar should be included for his next global tournament. With his record tally, Neymar is Brazil's historical leading marksman, but he hasn't improved his situation much with his behaviour on the pitch either. He seems greater frustration than usual, having argued with fans on several occasions in stadiums - it occurred in three consecutive matches in mid-year. The following month, the striker was reduced to crying after Santos suffered a 6-0 loss at home by Vasco da Gama - the heaviest defeat of his professional life. When questioned by a reporter about his fitness condition in a post-match interview, he also lost his patience: "Again with this, friend? I've answered this 500 times already." The same kind of question has been directed at his parent representative Neymar Sr as well. "Neymar's plan was to spend five months at Santos. To what end? To regain fitness. If Neymar managed to play, amen," he earlier stated, causing outrage among fans. There's remaining optimism, however, that Neymar's peak years aren't over and that he will be able to return to prominence the same way forward Ronaldo "Fenômeno" did in 2002 to overcome skepticism and injuries to guide Brazil to the championship trophy. The Brazilian great notes similarities. "He's a vital player for Brazil - there's nobody like Neymar," Ronaldo declared during a recent appearance with the forward in the Brazilian city. "It's an misrepresentation from a minority who believe he's neglecting his physical recovery. Anyone who have been in football recognize fully how hard it is to recover from an setback and restore form and self-belief. He's right on track." The Santos star has a important timeframe ahead to demonstrate that he's not the prince who relinquished his status.