FIFA World Cup: Neymar ruled out of Brazil's next 2 matches

Five-time champion Brazil was on Friday (November 25) dealt a huge blow as Neymar was ruled out of the team’s next two matches at the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar due to ligament damage in his right ankle.

Neymar was injured during Brazil’s 2-0 victory over Serbia in its Group G opener at Lusail Stadium on Thursday. A heavy tackle from Nikola Milenkovic resulted in the injury, and Neymar was substituted in the 80th minute.

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After the win, Neymar tweeted, “Tough game, but it was important to win. Congratulations team, first step taken… six more to go.”

During the contest, 30-year-old Neymar, who is playing in his third World Cup, was fouled nine times.

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Danilo too will be unavailable for the next two matches due to an ankle injury.

“Neymar and Danilo went through an MRI on Friday afternoon and we found ligament damage in the ankle of both of them,” Brazil team’s doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said.

“It is important to be calm and evaluate day by day. The idea is to recover them for the rest of the competition,” he added.

Brazil’s next match is on Monday (November 28) against Switzerland followed by final group game versus Cameroon on December 2.

Earlier, after the match against Serbia, Lasmar had said, “It was a direct trauma where the knee of a Serbian player made a movement that caused the sprain. He presented with some swelling of the ankle. We started treatment immediately, including on the bench. He is still in physio treatment now. And we will have to wait 24 to 48 hours before we have a clearer picture of the player’s situation.”