The president of Santos, Marcelo Teixeira, justified Neymar’s absence in the defeat to Corinthians for the semifinal of the Paulista Championship, this Sunday (9). Shirt 10 was on the bench due to muscle discomfort.
“If he had the slightest condition, he would be on the field. There was a concern of the coaching staff. We understand that today we should not, ”he said in an interview with TV Santa Cecilia’s“ Sunday Sports ”program.
Teixeira also denied that the coach aiming at the next commitments of the World Cup qualifiers.
“It was not thinking about the Brazilian team. With studies and examinations carefully, we found that Neymar had no game conditions, ”he said.
The club president also stressed the player’s rehabilitation trajectory: “He comes from a recovery process. We have to understand this. It was a fatality that he was left out of a decisive game, but it is part of the context. ”
Neymar was after breaking the previous cruciate ligament (LCA) in October 2023, during a match against Uruguay.
Given the speculation about a possible transfer of the Santos idol, the agent avoided commenting on the renewal of the attacker’s contract, which lasts six months.
“We can’t announce anything yet, but we are working to remain. Both parties have this intention, but we need to evaluate financial issues. The current contract is still in force and these six months are being analyzed. ”
The manager stressed that the club does not intend to rush: “We do not want to anticipate anything because there is nothing realized yet. The hardest thing was to bring it. Now that he is here, we will work so that, over the next three or four months, we can make his permanence viable until next year. ”
