On the night of Wednesday to Thursday, Neymar, emblematic figure of Parisian football, made his return to the championship fields by wearing the colours of his original club, Santos. The wait was palpable, marked by the hope of seeing the former attacker of Barça and PSG regain an optimal shape after a significant absence of 42 days. Initially introduced during the match against Fluminense, his condition seems satisfactory, the technician considered it appropriate to titularize him in this crucial match against the Atlético Mineiro, a symbolic opportunity for the player to wear a personalized jersey bearing the number 100, thus celebrating his hundredth appearance under the colors of the club.

However, this long-awaited return was abruptly interrupted by a new injury. After only 33 minutes of play, Neymar was forced to give up his place, evidently tested by pain in the hand behind the left thigh. The emotion submerged the player, whose face appeared through tears and the need to be evacuated from the ground on a stretcher. All signs indicate a recurrence of the left thigh ischio-jamber injury, which he seemed to have recently cured, casting a shadow on his sporting future.

Given this worrying situation, the Santos club has not yet communicated the exact nature of this new injury, nor the duration of unavailability that would result. The coach, Cesar Sampaio, expressed his concern at the end of the meeting, stressing the hope that Neymar’s absence would not be too long, suggesting the significant impact of this setback on the team’s prospects.