Neymar leaves Brazil match with left knee injury
Neymar was in tears as he left the field with a knee injury at the end of Brazil’s 2-0 World Cup qualifying loss to Uruguay on Tuesday, and was later seen leaving the stadium on crutches. The 31-year-old striker tripped and fell during a run in the 44th minute at the Centenario Stadium, and was immediately surrounded by players from both teams as he held his left knee.
Neymar was carried out on a stretcher with his hands to his face, and Richarlison came on to replace him.
“These 24 hours will be important to see how the knee will respond, how will be the swelling,” Lasmar said. “Imaging tests that will define a definitive diagnosis. It’s too early to say [if it’s a ligament injury]. Let’s wait for the exams calmly, evaluate calmly, and as soon as we have a definition we will let you know.”
At halftime, Brazil’s medical team had no quick update on Neymar’s condition, but after the game, team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar indicated that the star player had already completed tests and that more would be done on Wednesday.
In Montevideo, Neymar refused to speak to media. He wrote on Instagram after leaving the stadium, “God knows about all things.”
“All the honor and all the glory will always be yours, my Lord. No matter what, I have faith,” he said in the post.
Uruguay’s Darwin Nunez opened the scoring, and Nicolás de la Cruz added a second for Marcelo Bielsa’s side in a match in which Brazil dropped points for the second time in a row. It suffered its first defeat in 37 World Cup qualifying matches.
Neymar, who plays for Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League, was chastised by fans ahead of the World Cup qualifier for his poor performance against Venezuela on Thursday.
“Let’s hope it’s nothing serious,” Brazil captain Casemiro told Globo television. “He’s an important player for us, we’re very fond of him. He’s been suffering a lot from injuries and when he starts to pick up the pace he gets injured again.”
Neymar debuted for Brazil in 2010 and has 79 goals in 128 appearances, although he has struggled with injuries for both club and country in recent years. He has lost multiple months in each of the last two seasons due to ankle ailments, and he has already missed two World Cup games in Qatar after collapsing in Brazil’s opener against Serbia.
