Neymar criticises Vila Belmiro pitch, shares hopes for Brazil call-up | OneFootball

Neymar returned to reinforce Santos on Sunday afternoon and was a starter in the 1-1 draw against Corinthians, in a match valid for the sixth round of the Brazilian Championship. The number 10 of Peixe left the field irritated with the conditions of the Vila Belmiro pitch and criticized those responsible for its maintenance.

“There was everything to play a much better game, obviously. It is something that we, the players, do not have control over, but our directors do, our management, which is the field. I think that on a day of a classic you cannot let the irrigation break and have a slow game, bad for us, the players,” he said to Premiere.

“So, I spoke with all of them. It's your responsibility to take care of the field. This is not a factor for us having played poorly in some way, but it disrupts the spectacle. This greatly disrupted today's game. But I think that, after having two players down, the draw was not so bad,” he analyzed.

Additionally, the star spoke about the expectation of appearing on coach Carlo Ancelotti's call-up list.

And the National Team?

Assistants Mino Fulco and Franchesco Mauri, performance analyst Bruno Baquete, and goalkeeper coach Taffarel were present at Vila Belmiro to analyze players before the call-up for the friendlies against France and Croatia, on March 26 and 31.

Neymar is looking to compete in the 2026 World Cup and spoke about the expectation for Carlo Ancelotti's call-up, which takes place this Monday.

“I am working for this. Obviously, my desire is to return to the National Team, to play in the World Cup. But it is not up to me, it is up to the committee to choose. And, obviously, whether I am there or not, I will always support the National Team,” he concluded.

Santos' Situation in the Brasileirão

With the draw, Santos reached six points and occupies the 13th place in the Brasileirão standings.

Next Santos Match

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