Powered by

Qatar 2022: Neymar and his injury woes in World Cups

Neymar injured his right ankle during the 2-0 win against Serbia

neymar-wc-reuters Brazil's Neymar reacts after a challenge from Serbia'a Sasa Lukic | Reuters

Neymar sat crying on the bench, his jersey over his head. Later, he left the stadium limping with a swollen right ankle after Brazil's 2-0 victory over Serbia at the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

Brazil team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said Neymar sprained his ankle. “We put ice on it while he was on the bench and then in physiotherapy," Lasmar said on Thursday. "There is no test scheduled for now but we will schedule it if needed. He will be under observation.”

Brazil coach Tite said he was confident that Neymar will continue playing at the World Cup, but Lasmar said it was too early to comment on the extent of the injury.

Neymar, who was fouled nine times in the match against Serbia, got injured in the second half and was substituted in the 79th minute. Tite said he stayed on the field for 11 minutes before asking to be replaced.

Neymar was in tears on the bench as doctors began treating him in the final minutes of the game at Lusail Stadium. He pulled his shirt over his head as doctors taped ice around his foot. He went into the locker room limping, and also limped as he left the stadium without speaking to reporters.

Action replay of 2014?

It brought back memories of the injury he suffered in the 2014 World Cup at home.

During a heated encounter between Brazil and Columbia in the quarterfinal, Juan Zuniga pushed his knee into Neymar's back, leaving him on the ground, writhing in pain.

Zuniga, surprisingly, was not punished for the challenge. Brazil won the match 2-1 but Neymar had to be taken off 88 minutes into the tie. He was diagnosed with a broken bone in his back.

To make it worse, he watched from the sidelines, as the Selecao were mauled 7-1 by Germany in the semifinals.

Brazil went on to lose 0-3 to the Netherlands in the third-place play-off.

Injury shadow in 2018

Ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Neymar had an injury scare again, when he broke a bone in his right foot in February during his Paris Saint-Germain's 3-0 thrashing of Marseille.

He recovered in time for the tournament, but Neymar could not really set the tournament on fire, though he scored two goals and had two assists to his name. Brazil eventually went down to Belgium 1-2 in the semifinal.

The 30-year-old Neymar helped the Selecao win the 2013 Confederations Cup and its first Olympic gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.

With 75 goals for the national team, he is two shy of Pele's scoring record.

Brazil take on Switzerland next, on Monday, November 28.

📣 The Week is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TheWeekmagazine) and stay updated with the latest headlines