🔗 Share this article Brazil's Undisputed Star? Neymar's Global Tournament Race Against Time While Ousmane Dembele was crowned the prestigious football award in the autumn months, the Brazilian sensation was undergoing therapy for his latest physical setback of the year - while engaging in an online poker tournament. The veteran football star ultimately finished as second place, collecting around seventy-three thousand pounds in prize money. It was limited solace on a day when he had to observe the player who once replaced him at Barcelona lift the award he had long hoped to win. Since coming back to his youth team Santos in January, the experienced attacker has fallen short of expectations, drawing more attention for comparable situations than for his football. His return home after a dozen campaigns away was meant to be a chance for him to rediscover his best and, most importantly, revive a passion for the game that seemed lost after disappointing periods with Paris St-Germain and the Saudi club. Instead, it has been generally unsatisfactory for each stakeholder. This reflects the situation that the key issue being asked right now in Brazil is if Neymar will make it to the upcoming global tournament. He's against the clock. "Even the stars have to demonstrate that they are ready. The deadline approaches [for him]," Brazilian legend Tostao wrote in his regular feature. On midweek, Brazil head coach the Italian tactician disclosed his squad for the forthcoming matches against Korea Republic and the Asian nation and, once again, Neymar was excluded. "O Principe", as he was dubbed when welcomed back at Santos in a nod toward the king Pele, is still awaiting his debut under Ancelotti, having been absent from the national team for 24 months. He also remains an injury doubt for the November games, which, in the most pessimistic outlook, will leave him with just a pair of friendly matches in spring 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the revealing of the definitive squad for the World Cup. "For 15 years, Neymar was Brazil's unquestioned talisman, carrying massive pressure on his own," Brazilian icon Cafu stated. "But nobody wins the World Cup alone. Placing all our hopes on him at the present time is difficult because he has difficulty to even play multiple matches in a row." 'Omission based on skill level signals deeper issues' Not only has Neymar had various physical concerns since his return to Brazil - he's been absent for nearly half of Santos' matches this season - but, when he was available for selection, he was a distant from the player who during his prime dared to challenge the Argentine maestro and Cristiano Ronaldo. Of his several attacking returns so far, five have come against teams from lower tiers than Brazil's first division - a scoring contribution against a lower-league side, followed by a three goal involvements versus another lower-division opponent, all in the Sao Paulo State Championship. As Santos fight relegation in the top division, the number 10 no longer seems to be the difference maker he previously represented. Nevertheless, Ancelotti has maintained that the forward has sufficient months to show he is ready for the World Cup. "His objective must be to be ready in summer. It isn't crucial if he's in the squad in autumn, November or March," the Italian told L'Equipe newspaper. Ancelotti created local discussion last month by allegedly attempting to protect Neymar, suggesting the star had been excluded from the team over fitness concerns. But then Neymar himself challenged the claim, saying he "was excluded for technical reasons; it has nothing to do with my fitness level." In terms of fan opinion, it undoubtedly worsened the situation for Neymar. "If the player we have invested our faith in to win the World Cup is excluded for performance issues, clearly issues exist," Cafu observed. Will Neymar be capable of emulating Ronaldo in 2002? Polls from Datafolha found that the Brazilian public are split over whether Neymar should be selected for his fourth World Cup. With his 79 goals, Neymar is Brazil's historical leading marksman, but he hasn't helped his case much with his conduct during matches either. He seems increased agitation than normal, having argued with fans repeatedly in stadiums - it occurred in three consecutive matches in July. The following month, the forward was emotional after Santos suffered a 6-0 home defeat by Vasco da Gama - the worst result of his professional life. When asked by a reporter about his physical state in a post-match interview, he also lost his patience: "Again with this, friend? I've answered this 500 times already." The identical inquiry has been directed at his father and agent Neymar Sr as well. "Neymar's strategy was to spend five months at Santos. To what end? To recover. If Neymar was able to feature, so be it," he earlier stated, causing outrage among followers. There's still a slight hope, however, that Neymar's peak years haven't ended and that he will be able to revive his career the same way striker Ronaldo "Fenômeno" did in 2002 to surmount criticism and injuries to lead Brazil to the World Cup title. The former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan legend notes similarities. "He's a essential player for Brazil - there's nobody like Neymar," Ronaldo declared during a recent event with the forward in Sao Paulo. "It's an misrepresentation from a minority who believe he's disregarding his fitness rehabilitation. Anyone who have been in football knows perfectly how challenging it is to come back from an injury and recover rhythm and confidence. He's right on track." The Brazilian forward has a critical period ahead to demonstrate that he's not the prince who abandoned the throne.