Like him or not, Neymar is one of those rare players for whom people are willing to pay a high price to see him play. But today, at 31, the Brazilian may have reached a turning point in his career. Hit in the left knee during a collision with midfielder Nicolas de la Cruz during the clash against Uruguay (0-2), the number 10 of the Seleção will spend many months away from the field.
“Striker Neymar Jr. of the Brazilian national team and the Saudi team Al-Hilal underwent clinical and imaging examinations on Wednesday (18), which confirmed the rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus of the left knee. On Tuesday evening (17), Neymar suffered a knee sprain during the Brazilian national team’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Uruguay in Montevideo », indicated the Brazilian federation (CBF) last night. A huge blow for the player.
Cursed since his arrival at PSG
Injured in the ankle on February 19 against Lille, Neymar only returned to official competition on September 8. A little over a month later, he was back in the infirmary for a long time. Also catastrophic news for the Saudis of Al-Hilal who spent a fortune to snatch him from PSG (around €90 million for the transfer + a salary of around €160 million per season). Some will say that Neymar is cursed, others that he is paying for a controversial lifestyle. One thing is certain: the history of his injuries is dizzying.
At Paris Saint-Germain alone (2017-2023), Neymar totaled 741 days of unavailability. That’s a little more than two years (out of six spent in Paris) without playing! And since he left South America to play in Europe (2013/2014 season), the native of Mogi in Cruzes has had 28 injuries! Seven on the right foot, four on the right thigh, four on the left foot, seven on the left thigh, two on the ribs, one on the back and three miscellaneous (covid, muscle fatigue, mumps). In total, since 2014, Neymar has missed 140 official matches (including 114 at PSG alone!), or around 15 per year. A total that will skyrocket since we should not see the Auriverde international (128 caps, 79 goals) again for six months, at least.
