Santos full-back on Neymar’s praise: My biggest inspiration | OneFootball

Igor Vinícius was one of the main highlights for Santos in the 1-0 victory over Palmeiras last Saturday, in a postponed match of the 13th round of the Brazilian Championship. The great performance by the full-back earned praise from the attacking midfielder Neymar.

In an Instagram post, Neymar shared a photo hugging Igor Vinícius and wrote: “We’re together! Played some real football yesterday,” with two clapping emojis. The defender even reposted the story and returned the star's affection: “Always an honor.”

In a press conference this Tuesday, Igor Vinícius reacted again to Neymar's praise and shared some details about his relationship with the Santos star.

Neymar recovered from an injury and returned to be available for Santos against Fortaleza. Since then, he has played two matches as a starter. The star is an important reinforcement for Peixe in this decisive stretch of the Brasileirão.

Igor Vinícius gave a press conference this Tuesday (Photo: Reproduction/X @SantosFC)

Igor Vinícius' Numbers Against Palmeiras

Igor Vinícius was one of the best players for Santos in last Saturday's classic. According to data from Sofascore, the full-back made one tackle, two interceptions, one clearance, and recovered five balls.

According to the statistics platform, the defender won nine out of 12 ground duels and committed only two fouls. In attack, he had 61 actions with the ball, completed seven dribbles, created one big chance, and also contributed with a key pass. He had an 83% pass accuracy rate.

Having come up through Santos' youth ranks, Igor Vinícius returned to the club in July this year. In total, he has played 16 matches (11 as a starter) and has not yet contributed with goals or assists.

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