Neymar in a match with the Brazil national team in October 2017. (Alexandre Schneider/Getty Images)
(CNN Spanish) --
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, the fantastic 30-year-old Brazilian player, faces what could be his last chance to become world champion with Brazil and add one more wound to the five-time champion.
Since he began his dazzling football career, debuting with Santos at the age of 17, Neymar junior was considered one of the great hopes of the "canarinha" and, on many occasions, the press and vox populi considered him to be the natural replacement for Pelé, the Santos' new Brazilian hope to bring the World Cup to Brazil.
The 2010 World Cup in South Africa was a harsh corrective for Brazil.
In the quarterfinals, Neymar, at the age of 18, saw Wesley Sneijder lead the Netherlands and with his two goals he eliminated the Brazilian team.
After that enormous disappointment in the country, which had already discounted that they would win the World Cup, "Ney" debuted with the senior team to be the true leader of the "canarinha", although the Brazilian star has never lived up to his great class in world events.
In 2014, at the World Cup held in his country, Neymar played five games, scored four goals, gave two assists and played at a high level.
Everything seemed to smile at Neymar, until in the quarterfinal match against Colombia, Juan Camilo Zúñiga hit the Brazilian on the back, who was injured and missed the fateful semifinal match against Germany, which ended 1-7 in favor of the germanos, the biggest soccer debacle in Brazil, at the height of the "Maracanazo" of Uruguay in the final of the world championship in 1950 held in their country.
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In Russia 2018, in what promised to be the redemption of the "green-yellow", Brazil disappointed again... this time Belgium was their executioner in the quarterfinals and De Bruyne the vigilante who once again took away Neymar's dream of the World Cup .
However, the numbers of "Ney" are worth mentioning.
In 119 games for Brazil, the Brazilian star has provided 53 assists and has scored 74 goals.
Figures that until now have been insufficient to achieve glory in the two World Cups he has played, Brazil 2014 and Russia 2018.
However, the midfielder managed to win silver with Brazil in the 2012 London Olympics, Mexico being champion and gold in Rio 2016 against Germany scoring the decisive penalty of the penalty shootout that was reached after finishing the match and the extension in tie, being the best of the match.
In addition, Neymar won the Confederations Cup in 2013 and was runner-up in the 2021 Copa América.
"Ney" has started the season in very good shape, after a difficult season at PSG, he is being the main protagonist of the French team.
Now, it will be necessary to see if this current performance is enough for him to finally have the opportunity to be world champion with Brazil.
Qatar will pass sentence.
BrazilWorld CupNeymarBrazil National Team