Neymar is set to make his return to the Brasileirão next Saturday (25) at Vila Belmiro, where Santos will face Chapecoense in the 20th round of the competition.
However, the days leading up to the match have been quite tumultuous for the iconic No. 10.
Advertisement
Last Tuesday (21), Neymar faced intense backlash after he participated in a poker tournament mere hours before Santos played UCV in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana round-of-16 playoffs, where they secured a 4-1 victory.
This Thursday (23), the 34-year-old forward took to social media to address his critics.
+ Neymar trains as usual, and Santos get reinforcements for the match against Chapecoense
In a brief 32-second video on his Instagram stories, Neymar was seen in the gym drinking an energy drink and stating that he chose to play poker during his time off.
He concluded the video with a sarcastic remark: “Can I train, or are you going to keep criticizing me as well?”
Advertisement
“I was here preparing for my second training session, and I remembered how people kept talking about me playing poker on my day off… I worked in the morning and didn’t attend the game because I had just returned to training, and the following day was my day off. Yet, people continue to talk… Anyway, I’m here ready for training now. So, I want to ask you: ‘Can I train, or will you keep criticizing me as well?’ Mind your own business!”
Neymar recently contributed to Brazil’s journey in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which ended prematurely with a 2-1 loss to Norway in the round of 16, leaving them in 11th place overall. He scored Brazil’s lone goal in the tournament during stoppage time.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.