FIFA World Cup: Neymar injured in match against Serbia, right ankle sprained

Neymar looked teary-eyed on the bench in the closing moments of Brazil’s 2-0 win over Serbia at the World Cup, before leaving the stadium limping with a swollen right ankle. Brazil team doctor Rodrigo Lassmar said Neymar had sprained his right ankle. He, however, did not say whether he would be available to play in the team’s next match against Switzerland on Monday. He said, “We have used ice on his painful area on the bench in the dugout and then during physiotherapy. The seriousness of the injury is not yet known. He will be under observation. ,

“As of now, there are no plans to test him but if the need arises, we will do so,” he said. We will have more information about it tomorrow.” Brazil coach Tite said he was confident Neymar would continue to play at the World Cup, but Lassmar said it was too early to comment on the seriousness of the injury. Neymar was also injured in the 2014 World Cup. In this World Cup played in Brazil, he was ruled out of the tournament due to back pain in the quarter-finals against Colombia. Brazil was then defeated 7–1 by Germany in the semi-finals. Neymar, who was fouled nine times in the match against Serbia, was injured in the second half and was replaced by another player in the 79th minute.

Tite said Neymar stayed on the field for 11 minutes despite being injured.“He played through the pain because the team needed him,” Tite said. I didn’t even know he was injured at the time. Neymar was in tears as doctors began treating him in the final minutes of the game at the Lusail Stadium. As the doctors wrapped ice around his leg, they pulled his shirt over his head. He went to the locker room limping. He was still limping while leaving the stadium.

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Richarlison, who scored both goals for Brazil in this match, said, “The most important thing for us is that he is 100 percent fit for the next match. I’ll go to the hotel to see how he is.” The 30-year-old Neymar was instrumental in guiding Brazil to the 2013 Confederations Cup title and the Olympic gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games. The legend, who is eyeing his first World Cup title, has 75 goals for Brazil, two short of the record set by Pele, one of the game’s greatest players.