Brazil's Unquestioned Star? Neymar's World Cup Race Against Time
As the French winger received the prestigious football award in the autumn months, Neymar was undergoing therapy for his latest physical setback of the year - simultaneously participating in an virtual card tournament.
The veteran Brazilian ace eventually placed as runner-up, securing around seventy-three thousand pounds in prize money.
It was some consolation on a day when he had to observe the player who previously succeeded him at Barcelona receive the award he had consistently dreamed to win.
Since returning to his boyhood club Santos in the new year, the 33-year-old forward has fallen short of expectations, drawing more attention for similar incidents than for his football.
His homecoming after 12 seasons away was meant to be a chance for him to regain his form and, most importantly, restore a passion for the game that seemed lost after frustrating spells with Paris St-Germain and Al Hilal.
Instead, it has been widely disappointing for each stakeholder.
This reflects the situation that the main question being asked right now in Brazil is whether Neymar will be part of the 2026 World Cup.
He's running out of time.
"Even the stars have to demonstrate that they are ready. The time is passing [for him]," 1970 World Cup-winner Tostao commented in his newspaper column.
On Wednesday, Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti disclosed his squad for the forthcoming matches against Korea Republic and Japan and, once again, Neymar was excluded.
"O Principe", as he was dubbed when welcomed back at Santos in a reference to the king Pele, is yet to play under Ancelotti, having been missing from the Selecao for two years.
He continues to be an fitness concern for the November games, which, in the worst scenario, will leave him with only two friendly matches in spring 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the revealing of the definitive squad for the World Cup.
"Over a decade and a half, Neymar was Brazil's unquestioned talisman, shouldering enormous expectations on his own," former AC Milan and Roma legend Cafu remarked.
"But no one wins the World Cup alone. Putting all our expectations on him at the present time is challenging because he finds it hard to even play three games in a row."
'Technical exclusion raises serious questions about Neymar'
Not only has Neymar had repeated injury problems since his homecoming - he's missed nearly half of Santos' matches this campaign - but, when he was available for selection, he was a different to the player who during his prime dared to challenge Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Of his several attacking returns so far, five have come against teams from divisions below 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 regional competition.
As Santos fight relegation in the top division, the playmaker no longer seems to be the game-changer he once was.
Nevertheless, Ancelotti has insisted that the forward has plenty of time to show he is prepared for the World Cup.
"His objective must be to be ready in June. It doesn't matter if he's in the squad in autumn, late autumn or March," the Italian told French media.
Ancelotti caused local discussion last month by allegedly attempting to protect Neymar, claiming the star had been omitted from the team over physical condition issues.
But then Neymar himself challenged the claim, saying he "was left out for tactical decisions; it has no connection to my physical condition."
In terms of fan opinion, it undoubtedly worsened the situation for Neymar.
"If the player we have placed all our hopes on to win the World Cup is left out for performance issues, evidently issues exist," Cafu observed.
Can Neymar follow Ronaldo's 2002 example?
Research from Datafolha found that Brazilians are split over whether Neymar should be included for his fourth World Cup.
With his record tally, Neymar is Brazil's all-time top scorer, but he hasn't helped his case much with his in-game attitude either.
He seems greater frustration than usual, having argued with fans multiple times in venues - it happened in successive games in July.
The next month, the forward was reduced to crying after Santos suffered a 6-0 home defeat by Vasco da Gama - the heaviest defeat of his professional life.
When questioned by a journalist about his physical state in a post-match interview, he showed irritation: "This topic again, friend? I've answered this 500 times already."
The same kind of question has been directed at his parent representative Neymar Sr as well.
"Neymar's strategy was to remain for five months at Santos. To what end? To regain fitness. If Neymar managed to play, so be it," he previously explained, causing displeasure among supporters.
There's still a slight hope, however, that Neymar's best days aren't over and that he will be able to resurrect his form the same way striker Ronaldo "Phenomenon" did in the 2002 World Cup to overcome skepticism and injuries to lead Brazil to the championship trophy.
The Brazilian great notes parallels.
"He's a essential player for Brazil - there's no one else like Neymar," Ronaldo said during a recent appearance with the forward in the Brazilian city.
"It's an exaggeration from a minority who believe he's disregarding his fitness rehabilitation.
Those who have been in football understand completely how hard it is to return from an setback and recover form and self-belief. He's progressing well."
The Brazilian forward has a few decisive months ahead to show that he's not the prince who abandoned the throne.
