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Brazilian star Neymar, who has been out of action for 7 months, revealed that he is making “painful” progress in his recovery from the injury and surgery he underwent on the cruciate ligament and meniscus of his left knee, denying rumors that he left Al Hilal Saudi Arabia to return to his starting team, Santos.
The 32-year-old said Monday on the sidelines of an auction for his charity in São Paulo: “It is painful, there is a lot of suffering, but I am in the process of recovering. It has been 7 months since my injury, and there are still a few more months to go, but we are getting there,” to the stage of recovery and return to the field.
Neymar joined Al Hilal in August 2023, coming from Paris Saint-Germain in a huge deal, but he was injured on October 17 during an international match for his country’s national team, and this prevented him from participating most of the season with Al Hilal, which marked a strong season that witnessed a historic series of victories. The successive match reached 34 matches and was crowned with a double in the local league and cup.
In a statement he made last month, Al Hilal’s Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus said that Neymar will not be ready to participate in the preparation stage for next season, because he will not be able to recover from his injury and play competitively before next September at the very least.
The absence of Brazilian Neymar from Al Hilal Saudi Arabia will continue until next October pic.twitter.com/IGoYiTddPh
– Al Jazeera Net Sports (@AJASports) May 21, 2024
The former Spanish Barcelona star will not be with the Brazilian national team during its participation in the Copa America tournament scheduled in the United States between June 20 and July 14. He says: “This matter saddens me.” “It is unfortunate that I have to stay away, but of course I will support them.”
He continued: “I hope that Brazil can win. We have the team capable of achieving this with high-level players,” praising in particular Real Madrid’s Spanish striker Vinicius Junior, who on Saturday won the Champions League title with the Royal Club and scored a goal in the final match against Borussia Dortmund. German (2-0).
He said, “It is clear that the Golden Ball will go to him, I hope so.” I sent him a message before the final and another after. “He will definitely win the Ballon d’Or, he is amazing and proudly flies our country’s colors all over the world.”
He was finally asked about the rumors about his return next season to his starting team, Santos, and he replied, “What is being said is completely untrue, there is nothing planned for him.” There is still a year left on my contract with Al Hilal, and I hope I can have a great season.”
He continued: “It is true that Santos is the team of my heart and I would like to return one day, but I do not have a plan in mind” currently to return to it.