Neymar, after almost three years of absence, is back on the Brazilian national team’s squad list, providing coach Carlo Ancelotti with the opportunity to include an athlete whose individual performance in goals for the yellow shirt surpasses the sum of all the other 25 players called up.
Playing for the national team since August 2010, the Santos striker accumulated 79 goals in 128 matches. On the other hand, the rest of the squad currently in the United States has 77 goals collectively, distributed among 17 athletes. Players like Fabinho, Douglas Santos, Ibañez, Léo Pereira, Éderson, in addition to the three goalkeepers (Alisson, Ederson and Weverton), do not have any goals for the main team.
This impressive record is even more remarkable considering that the player has been away from the national team since October 2023, during which time he suffered a serious injury to his left knee, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus. His last ball in the net dates back to December 2022, in the decisive match against Croatia, which culminated in Brazil’s elimination from the World Cup in Qatar.
Among the current squad, Lucas Paquetá is the closest to the Brazilian idol in terms of number of goals, registering 13 goals in 65 games for the main team. Raphinha and Vinicius Jr. share the mark of 11 goals each, although the Real Madrid star, in excellent form, has the possibility of surpassing his Barcelona teammate, who suffered an injury in a recent clash against Haiti.
It is important to highlight that Neymar holds the title of the Brazilian team’s top scorer when only official games are counted, totaling 79 goals. This number puts him two goals ahead of King Pelé, who, in turn, leads the general ranking with 95 goals if matches played against combined teams and clubs are included, common practices until the mid-1980s.
Despite his call-up, the striker’s participation in the match against Scotland has not been confirmed. He resumed training without limitations last Sunday (21), having participated in a few sessions before being included in Ancelotti’s list. The current expectation is that he will start on the bench and be used only to gain rhythm in the final minutes of the game.
The technical team and medical department of the Brazilian team are working to ensure that Neymar is in full playing condition from the knockout phase of the competition onwards.
The team’s main scorers among outfield players
- Neymar – 79 in 128 games
- Paquetá – 13 in 65 games
- Raphinha – 11 in 41 games
- Vini Jr. – 11 in 51 games
- Casemiro – 9 in 88 games
- Marquinhos – 7 in 107 games
- Endrick – 4 in 18 games
- Martinelli – 4 in 24 games
- Matheus Cunha – 3 in 25 games
- Bruno Guimarães – 3 in 45 games
- Igor Thiago – 2 in 5 games
- Danilo Santos – 2 in 6 games
- Luiz Henrique – 2 in 16 games
- Alex Sandro – 2 in 45 games
- Rayan – 1 in 3 games
- Bremer – 1 in 8 games
- Gabriel Magalhães – 1 in 19 games
- Danilo – 1 in 72 games
- Fabinho – 0 in 34 games
- Douglas Santos – 0 in 9 games
- Ibañez – 0 in 8 games
- Léo Pereira – 0 in 4 games
- Éderson – 0 in 4 games
Find out where to watch the clash between Brazil and Scotland
The clash between Brazil and Scotland, scheduled for this Wednesday (24), starting at 7pm (Brasília time), will be broadcast live on CazéTV, accessible for free on Disney+.
Brazilian team schedule: next appointment
The national team’s next opponent will be Scotland, on June 24, at 7pm (Brasília time), in a World Cup match.