On the eve of the match between Brazil and Chile for the World Cup qualifiers, national team coach Carlo Ancelotti again had to respond to Neymar’s absence.
The Italian again cited his physical condition as one of the main criteria adopted by the coaching staff to choose not to call the player.
“No one can discuss Neymar at technical level. What we are evaluating every day, every game, is their physical condition,” said Ancelotti.
“Not only of him, of all the players who are here, of all we are evaluating. Because the truth is that this national team has a lot of competition, very much,” he added.
By announcing the list of summoned for the last round of the regional qualifier, the coach had already said that the Santos player needed to reach “good physical condition” to help the national team.
Neymar made statements days later denying that his fitness justified the absence in the call.
“I was out [da convocação] By technical option, it has nothing to do with physical condition, “said shirt 10, after the goalless draw between Santos and Fluminense for the Brazilian Championship, in Vila Belmiro.
Ancelotti avoided entering controversy on Wednesday and said the player is right in his notment.
“I believe it is the truth, because it is a technical decision, which is based on many things: what the player is doing, what the player did, and also the problems he has had. When I speak of physical criteria, it is a criterion that the whole commission considers very important.”
Neymar’s last match for the national team was in October 2023, when he suffered a serious ligament injury in the left knee that left him away from the lawns for about a year.
According to the coach, the commission estimates that there are about 70 players capable of defending the national team in the 2026 World Cup.
To be in the World Cup, Ancelotti said, players need to demonstrate technical quality, be “100% physically” and adapt to the team.
The coach said he fetches athletes to “play for the team, not for the individual.”
“It may be that I climb a player who has less quality than another, but is more effective for the team.”
The Italian also said that he has enjoyed the short period of training at Granja Comary, in Teresópolis, to know a little more players with whom he has not had so much contact.
The coach praised the environment at the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) Training Center and talked about the differences he realized regarding work in major clubs.
“The environment of a national team is different from what is within the club. They all speak the same language, have the same culture, I think it is much easier to create a good environment,” he said.
“In this call, we have new players [nove novidades em relação à lista anterior] And I’m happy with them, they work well, they are focused. It’s a positive environment and the idea is to be able to have this atmosphere until the World Cup. “
Already classified for the World Cup, the Brazilian National Team will face Chile this Thursday (4), at 21h30 (Brasília time), in Maracanã. Following this, he will travel to El Alto, Bolivia City with an altitude of over 4,000 meters, where he will face the home team on the 9th, at 20:30.
With 25 points, the Brazilian team is in the third position of the qualifiers and is no longer likely to reach Argentina, which adds 35. Draw with Ecuador, Brazil disputes second place in the tournament.
