Neymar, 32, who plays for Al-Hilal in the Saudi Professional League, will return to his homeland.
“I have spoken with Neymar, and he will finish well in the Saudi Pro League and come back,” Santos FC president Orlando Holo said in an interview on Nov. 11 (ET).
Neymar is a star player in Brazil. Santos is his home team. Neymar was inspired to play soccer by his father, who was an unknown soccer player. At the age of 11, he joined the Santos youth team, where legends like 홀덤사이트 Pele and Robinho played, and turned professional at the age of 16.
He joined Santos in 2009 and quickly attracted the attention of Europe’s biggest clubs. In fact, Chelsea FC and Real Madrid tried to sign Neymar, but Santos’ insistence and the requests of legends like Pele convinced him to stay, and he played for Santos until the 2012-13 season.
Neymar has been one of Santos’ best players since Pele. The purity of his goals, especially in the finals of various competitions, was high. He won three consecutive Campeonato Paulista titles, the state soccer league of the state of São Paulo, and was the top scorer in three consecutive finals.
In the 2010 Copa do Brasil, the Brazilian FA Cup, he scored the final goal and was the top scorer. The following year, he scored the winning goal in the 2011 Copa Libertadores, the South American continent’s version of the Champions League, and was named the tournament’s MVP, leading the club to its first Champions League title since Pele.
Neymar moved to Barcelona in the summer of 2013. In his debut season, he established himself as an integral part of the team, scoring 15 goals and providing 11 assists in 41 games, and in 2014-15, he played a key role in winning the treble with 39 goals and seven assists. It was during this time that Barcelona created the “MSN” line, which was named after the initials of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Neymar.
After four seasons at Barcelona, where he scored 105 goals and provided 59 assists in 186 games, Neymar moved to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). At the time, Neymar’s €222 million transfer fee alone broke the record for the highest transfer fee in soccer history.
At PSG, Neymar immediately hit the ground running, winning the Ligue 1 Player of the Year and Assistants of the Year in his first season. In six seasons, he has 118 goals and 71 assists in 173 games and five league titles. Last season, Neymar produced a whopping 34 offensive points with 18 goals and 16 assists in 29 games.
Last summer, Neymar chose a new challenge. He moved to Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League. But injuries slowed him down. In a World Cup South American qualifier against Uruguay, he was stretchered off the field in first-half stoppage time and was ruled out for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus.
Neymar and Al Hilal had two years left on their contract, but the injury wiped out the entire year. After a year, Neymar will become a free agent and will likely leave the Saudi Pro League. This is where Neymar”s hometown team, Santos, comes in.
A transfer is likely. ”The talks are very early, but early talks lead to good things,” said Orlando Holo. To come back here, Neymar needs to recover well from his injury. He will finish well in the Saudi Pro League and then he will come back.”
Neymar has been at Santos for 10 years. During his time at Santos, Neymar was a favorite of the club and earned a spot on the Brazilian national team. If Neymar were to return to his homeland, Santos would likely be his last club. He”s 32 years old.