On Wednesday (24/06), Neymar returned to the field with the Brazilian team in a game against Scotland. The star wore the green and yellow shirt after almost three years away. After recovering from his calf injury, the number 10 was able to celebrate Brazil’s 3-0 victory in front of almost 65 thousand fans in Florida and, consequently, the leadership in Group C and advancement to the knockout stages.

The clock showed 30 minutes and 43 seconds when Neymar entered the field. In 21 minutes, he made 13 passes and 12 successful ones, three of which were indicated as decisive in the statistics. “I can classify this day as one of the most special of my life. In the locker room, alone afterwards, I cried because it was a huge relief to be able to experience all of this again. It has always been a dream of me to wear the Seleção shirt, play in the World Cup, maybe win, experiencing all of this is very good. I am very happy, I thank every Brazilian who supported me”, said the striker.

The fans celebrated the return of Neymar, who also shone on other occasions with Brazilian team in the field. In past World Cups, he played 13 games, scored eight goals and provided four assists. Below, remember the star’s trajectory in the world tournament!

2014 World Cup

At 22 years old, Neymar debuted at the 2014 World Cup, held in Brazil. In the first game, the Brazilian star scored a goal from outside the box and another from the penalty spot in Brazil’s 3-1 victory over Croatia, at Arena Corinthians. Still in the group stage, the player found the net twice again in the game against Cameroon, which ended 4-1.

In the quarterfinals, however, the athlete suffered a back injury after taking a knee from Colombian Zuñiga. For this reason, he was left out of the semi-final against Germany and, consequently, the terrible 7-1.

Neymar finished World cup 2014 as the third highest scorer, tied with Lionel Messi and behind Colombia’s James Rodríguez and Germany’s Thomas Muller.

2018 World Cup

In 2018, at the World Cup that took place in Russia, Neymar started the tournament while still recovering from injuries, which influenced the star’s performance on the field in his debut against Switzerland. On that occasion, he even suffered 10 fouls – a record, making him the most “hunted” player in a single World Cup match since Alan Shearer in the 1998 World Cup.

In the second round of the group stage, the player scored a goal at the end of the match, in stoppage time, against Costa Rica. Then, in the round of 16, the striker opened the scoring and secured a goal against Mexico. That year, in addition to the two goals, the number 10 finished the World Cup with 5 matches played and two assists.

2022 World Cup

At the 2022 World Cup, which took place in Qatar, Neymar shone in his debut against Serbia, scoring two goals. However, in the same game, he suffered a sprain in his right ankle, which left him out of the following group stage games.

The star returned to play with the Brazilian team in the knockout stage. In the round of 16, he scored a penalty goal in the 4-1 victory against South Korea. In the quarter-finals, he scored a goal during extra time against Croatia. In this last dispute, however, Brazil ended the game in a draw and was eliminated on penalties.

Still, Neymar achieved a great feat in this World Cup: the goal against Croatia equaled him with Pelé in goals in official games for the Brazilian team, with 77 goals, according to FIFA criteria.