Neymar trained for the first time together with all the other players of the Brazilian team this Wednesday (17), the team’s penultimate activity before the clash against Haiti, on Friday (19), in the second round of the group stage of the World Cup.
The number 10’s participation comes one day after he did his first physical exercises on the grass at Columbia Park, where the Brazilian team trains in Morristown, New Jersey. On Tuesday, he went to the field initially wearing sneakers and then cleats. As images released by the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) showed, he played with the ball in some skill moves, in training that was closed to the press.
Before this Wednesday’s activity, the star was applauded by his teammates and then underwent a kind of baptism, as a way of celebrating his return to activities. The athletes formed a corridor, through which the number 10 passed and received a few slaps on the head. Birthday boy last week, Carlo Ancelotti went through the same ritual.
During the warm-up, the attacker did some exercises separately from the group, close to one of the goalposts. Then, he participated in the silly circle with all the other athletes.
It is too early, however, to predict whether he will be available to coach Carlo Ancelotti for Brazil’s second World Cup clash. Neymar has spent the last few weeks recovering from a right calf injury. According to CBF doctor Rodrigo Lasmar, the initial three-week recovery period would end this Wednesday. Therefore, it is still unlikely that he will be able to play on Friday as, in theory, he would still not have the pace to play.
As has been the practice during the Brazilian team’s training sessions in the USA, the press only had access to the first 15 minutes, when the players, in general, only warm up. During this period, Ancelotti gave no indication of which formation he will send to the field against the Haitians.
On Monday (15), the player had undergone new tests at a clinic in the New Jersey region to assess the recovery of the injury to his right calf. According to the CBF, the test was scheduled and was not motivated by any complications.
In addition to the expectation of debuting in the World Cup, Neymar wants to end the hiatus that began since his last game for the Brazilian team, in October 2023, against Uruguay, in the Qualifiers, when he suffered a rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus.
After undergoing surgery, he was sidelined for a year. After that, successive physical problems also prevented him from returning to defend Brazil.
Before the World Cup, he had not appeared in any of Carlo Ancelotti’s other squads. His name only appeared on the coach’s final list, announced on May 18.
The previous day, in a match for Santos, in the Brazilian Championship, the player suffered a new injury, grade 2. When he presented himself to the team, he underwent magnetic resonance imaging tests, which indicated a greater severity than that initially reported by the São Paulo club.
The technical committee of the Brazilian team already knew that they would not be able to count on the athlete for Brazil’s debut in the World Cup, against Morocco, last Saturday (13). After that, the question became when he could be available. After Haiti, the Canarian team ends the group stage against Scotland, on the 24th, next Wednesday, in Miami.
