Neymar a doubt, Lula: Ancelotti won’t pick players on reputation

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·26 February 2026

Neymar a doubt, Lula: Ancelotti won’t pick players on reputation

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sent a veiled message this Thursday to star Neymar, who, at 34, is fighting to regain his best form after several injuries and to be considered for the national team's call-up list for the 2026 World Cup.

The top scorer in the history of the national team is one of the players who expressed sympathy for former President Jair Bolsonaro, Lula's main opponent.

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During a ceremony with the World Cup in Brasília, Lula recalled a recent conversation with Brazil's coach, the Italian Carlo Ancelotti.

“I talked to Ancelotti and found him to be an extremely serious figure, with his head in the right place. (I am) convinced that only those who are 100% fit to play will play, that he will not call anyone just for their name. He will call if the person is playing, if the person is trained, if they are prepared,” said Lula.

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After a prolonged career in the elite of European football, Neymar returned to his beloved team, Santos, at the beginning of 2025. Since then, several injuries have prevented him from meeting the fans' expectations.

However, he was decisive in keeping Santos in the first division of the Brazilian Championship, with eight goals and one assist in 20 matches played in the 2025 edition.

The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) player has stated several times that he hopes to be on the call-up list for the World Cup, to be held from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

However, he has not yet played for the national team since Ancelotti took charge in May 2025.

Neymar returned to the field ten days ago after knee surgery in December. On Wednesday, he released internal data from his team indicating that he was the second fastest player in Sunday's match against the modest Novorizontino, which defeated Santos 2-1 and eliminated them from the Paulista Championship.

The striker's support for Bolsonaro dates back to the 2022 presidential campaign, when, amid acute polarization, Ney publicly positioned himself in favor of the then-president, considering that he defended “similar values” to his own.

Bolsonaro was defeated at the polls by Lula. In 2025, he was sentenced to 27 years in prison for devising a plan to disregard the election results and remain in power.

*With content from AFP

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.