The Brazilian Undisputed Star? Neymar Jr's World Cup Race Against Time
As the French winger was crowned the 2025 Ballon d'Or in late September, Neymar was receiving treatment for his third injury of the year - while participating in an virtual card tournament.
The 33-year-old football star ultimately finished as second place, collecting around seventy-three thousand pounds in tournament winnings.
It was limited solace on a day when he had to observe the player who previously succeeded him at Barcelona receive the award he had consistently dreamed to win.
After returning to his youth team Santos in January, the 33-year-old forward has failed to live up to expectations, drawing more attention for episodes like this than for his football.
His homecoming after a dozen campaigns away was intended as a chance for him to regain his form and, crucially, revive a love of football that seemed gone after frustrating spells with PSG and the Saudi club.
Instead, it has been generally unsatisfactory for each stakeholder.
This reflects the situation that the main question being asked right now in Brazil is whether Neymar will make it to the 2026 World Cup.
He's running out of time.
"All players have to demonstrate that they are prepared. The clock is ticking [for him]," 1970 World Cup-winner Tostao stated in his newspaper column.
On midweek, Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti revealed his squad for the forthcoming matches against South Korea and Japan and, yet again, Neymar was excluded.
"O Principe", as he was dubbed when welcomed back at Santos in a reference to the legend Pelé, is yet to play under Ancelotti, having been absent from the national team for 24 months.
He continues to be an injury doubt for the November games, which, in the most pessimistic outlook, will leave him with just a pair of exhibition games in March 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the announcement of the final list for the World Cup.
"Over a decade and a half, Neymar was Brazil's undisputed star, shouldering massive pressure on his own," Brazilian icon Cafu said.
"But no one wins the World Cup single-handedly. Putting all our expectations on him at the moment is problematic because he has difficulty to even play multiple matches in a row."
'Technical exclusion raises serious questions about Neymar'
Not just has Neymar had various physical concerns since his return to Brazil - he's been absent for 47% of Santos' matches this season - but, when he was able to play, he was a different to the player who during his zenith competed with 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 scoring contribution against Agua Santa, followed by a goal and two assists versus another lower-division opponent, all in the regional competition.
As Santos battle against demotion in the top division, the playmaker no longer seems to be the decisive factor he previously represented.
Despite that, Ancelotti has asserted that the forward has plenty of time to show he is ready for the World Cup.
"His aim must be to be ready in summer. It doesn't matter if he's in the squad in October, late autumn or spring," the Italian told L'Equipe newspaper.
Ancelotti created local discussion last month by allegedly attempting to protect Neymar, stating the star had been omitted from the team over fitness concerns.
But then Neymar himself contradicted this, saying he "was left out for tactical decisions; it has nothing to do with my physical condition."
In terms of popular view, it undoubtedly worsened the situation for Neymar.
"If the player we have placed all our hopes on to deliver the World Cup is left out for technical reasons, obviously issues exist," Cafu commented.
Is a Ronaldo-style comeback possible for Neymar?
Studies from Datafolha found that the Brazilian public are divided over whether Neymar should be called up for his next global tournament.
With his 79 goals, Neymar is Brazil's historical leading marksman, but he hasn't helped his case much with his behaviour on the pitch either.
He seems greater frustration than usual, having argued with fans repeatedly in stadiums - it happened in three consecutive matches in July.
The next month, the forward was left in tears after Santos suffered a 6-0 home defeat by their rivals - the heaviest defeat of his professional life.
When asked by a reporter about his fitness condition in a post-match interview, he showed irritation: "This topic again, mate? I've responded to this 500 times already."
The similar query has been posed to his father and agent Neymar Sr as well.
"Neymar's intention was to remain for five months at Santos. To what end? To recover. If Neymar was able to feature, so be it," he previously explained, causing outrage among supporters.
There's remaining optimism, however, that Neymar's peak years haven't ended and that he will be able to resurrect his form the same way forward Ronaldo "Fenômeno" did in the 2002 World Cup to overcome doubt and injuries to guide Brazil to the World Cup title.
The Brazilian great notes parallels.
"He's a crucial player for Brazil - there's no one else like Neymar," Ronaldo stated during a recent event with the forward in the Brazilian city.
"It's an exaggeration from a small group who believe he's ignoring his fitness rehabilitation.
Anyone who have been in football recognize fully how challenging it is to recover from an injury and restore rhythm and confidence. He's progressing well."
The Brazilian forward has a critical period ahead to prove that he's not the prince who relinquished his status.
