Brazil have advanced to the last 16 of the World Cup as group winners despite losing 1-0 to Cameroon on Friday night but a lot of the talk around the Selecao is still about the fitness of their star player Neymar.
Neymar suffered an ankle injury in Brazil’s opening match with Serbia and the issue has caused the Paris Saint-Germain superstar to miss the rest of the group-stage matches.
Brazil’s medical department originally declared that the 30-year-old would only be out of the tournament’s group stage, and would be back in time for the knockout rounds if the team progressed but there were worrying reports out of the South American country yesterday.
According to reports in South America, via The Mirror, Brazil are worried that Neymar’s injury could be worse than first anticipated and he may have suffered ligament damage – which would end his World Cup campaign.
Sky Sports reported on Friday that Brazil will make a decision on Neymar’s participation in the rest of the World Cup after the Cameroon game as the superstar continues to recover from his ankle injury.
However, Spanish football journalist Sid Lowe, who was at the game on Friday night spotted an encouraging sign regarding Neymar’s fitness after the final whistle.
The PSG star entered the pitch to congratulate the Cameroon stars on their win and to talk to his teammates but he was spotted running around, which the 30-year-old would not be allowed to do if the injury was very serious.
This seems to be a good sign regarding the rest of Neymar’s tournament as everyone wants to see Brazil’s best player back in action.
Neymar running across pitch. A good sign? pic.twitter.com/XY82ARQjXF
— Sid Lowe (@sidlowe) December 2, 2022