Ronaldo, one of the great Brazilians, has encouraged the Italian coach to consider Neymar’s comeback to the national team for the 2026 World Cup in Canada and the United States.
While leading Brazil in scoring with 79 goals in 128 matches, Neymar is was faced with a knee ligament injury in October 2023 which prevented him from playing for the national team. The 33-year-old forward is off to Santos again as of January after a rather brief and unsuccessful stay at Al Hilal, where he played only five games before the injury.
Although Neymar has regained his condition and has been playing regularly in Brazil, Ancelotti has not selected him for his first four matches. Ronaldo declared at a promotional event in São Paulo that the attacker is still a must-have in the Brazil World Cup project.
“He is a player who gives the Selecao the winning touch. There is nobody else like him in our ranks,” said Ronaldo. “The public want him to go to the World Cup and if that is the case, it is Brazil that will benefit most.”
“Neymar has to get fit for us to be able to consider him,” stated Ancelotti beforehand. There is still a lot of speculation about his participation less than a year before the World Cup.