Football

Neymar Jr’s ‘can’t guarantee’ Qatar 2022 is not his last 

November 12, 2022 4:16 pm

There is a constant changing of the guard in Brazil. However, there have been mainstays during their rich history. Neymar and Thiago Silva have been such for the Canarinha over the last decade. 

At 38 years of age, it looks unlikely that Silva will be in the ranks for the next edition jointly hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States. 

Neymar is eight years his junior and the swashbuckling attacker has time on his hand. However, this is not the way he is taking this competition. 

He has been the heralded messiah of Brazilian football thanks to his prolific scoring and bag of tricks. But has yet to stamp his authority on the quadrennial international men’s competition. 

Neymar has his back against the wall and is unsure about his future. Reflecting on the competition, the Mogi das Cruzes native shared that he is taking one game at a time and does not know whether he will return for the next competition. 

“I’ll play like it’s the last,” Neymar told Globo. “I talk to my father, we always talk, to play each game as if it were the last because you don’t know what will happen tomorrow.

“I can’t guarantee that I’ll play another [World] Cup. I honestly don’t know. I’ll play like it’s the last. Maybe I’ll play another one, maybe not. It depends. There’s going to be a coaching change and I don’t know if that coach will like me.”

Only Pele beyond Neymar now

Since their last triumph on the global stage in 2002, Brazil has come up short at each time of asking. Tite has already shared that he will be stepping down after their adventures in Qatar. 

To add to the mystery, the Brazilian Football Confederation has yet to name his replacement. Without knowledge about the direction of the national team, Neymar can be given leeway about his own stance. 

“I’ve already built a long history in the national team and, for sure, I want to finish it well,” Neymar added.

“It’s more than I imagined than I dreamt,” he said. “I never thought about numbers, I never wanted to overtake anyone, break a record. I always just wanted to play football.

Despite this, the Paris Saint Germain star does not want to go without fighting. He has etched his name in the annals of Brazilian football and is only two goals behind Pele in their all-time scorers’ list. Neymar is aware of the achievement and hailed the legendary attacker. 

“Pele is the reference. Pele is football. Pele is practically everything for our country. The respect and admiration I have for him is enormous.”

The current crop of Brazil stars are special

The former Santos and Barcelona star is in prolific form and can take the gong from Pele in this event. He has scored 15 goals and laid down 12 assists in 19 appearances for PSG in the 2022/23 campaign. 

Moreover, the Brazil mainstay has been part of their impressive run in international meetings, going unbeaten since their defeat in the Copa America final.

Considering his own form and that of his compatriots, Neymar believes this group of players can return international glory to the Canarinha. 

“I want to play this [World] Cup, dedicate myself to it, because I’m sure we have the potential to go very far,” he added. “Although a lot of people don’t believe in us, we will prove otherwise. I see that this national team has a lot of good things, and I see that we can go very far.

“I’m happy. I like to play football and I like to win. I like to be better than I am every day. I like helping my teammates, which is the main thing. I hope my name is engraved in football history.”

 

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