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Choosing injury-prone Neymar in Brazil’s World Cup squad seemed like a risk and that proved true ten days later on Thursday.
The 34-year-old striker is suffering from a calf injury and is unlikely to be fit to play in Brazil’s opening match against Morocco, team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said.
“We expect him to be out for two to three weeks,” Lasmar told reporters.
Brazil plays Morocco on June 13 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, to form a group that also includes Haiti and Scotland.
“Neymar has arrived [Wednesday] “At Granja Comary,” Lasmar said, referring to the team’s training base near Rio de Janeiro, “he passed all the medical exams and was diagnosed with a grade two calf injury.”
Neymar was selected for his fourth World Cup in a 26-man squad by coach Carlo Ancelotti, although he has not played for the national team since October 2023, when he tore the cruciate ligament in his left knee during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay.
He has only played a few games this season for Santos since returning from Saudi Arabia on a free transfer from Al-Hilal.
FIFA World Cup rules allow Neymar to be replaced before the June 1 deadline for Ancelotti to submit his final squad, or up to a day before a team’s first match in the tournament.
Associated Press reporting.
