Neymar Junior slammed after missing game days after carnival outing

In recent weeks, Barcelona have been linked with a reunion with Neymar Junior in the summer, with the Brazilian superstar out of contract in the summer. One of the big questions over doing so is whether the 33-year-old still has the commitment and the professionalism that Barcelona require, and already after just two months in Sao Paulo, has had his first controversy at Santos.

Neymar was spotted during last week at carnival in Rio de Janeiro with pregnant partner Bruna Biancardi, as well as Santos teammates Yeferson Soteldo, Tomas Rincon and Joao Basso. However come Sunday, Neymar was then unavailable for Santos’ semi-final clash against Corinthians in the Sao Paulo State Championship, his only shot at lifting a trophy with the club.

Barcelona are considering the signing of Neiser Villarreal, the Colombian striker and top scorer of the U20 South American Championship. He could arrive at a low cost due to his contract situation with Millonarios. Deco and the sporting department are evaluating the move, with…

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This resulted in no shortage of backlash from fans, who accused him of missing the game on purpose, as reported by Sport. However Neymar took to Instagram to defend himself, writing the following in a story.

“All I wanted was to be on the pitch today and help my teammates in some way… But last Thursday, I felt some discomfort, which kept me from playing today. We did a test this morning, and I felt it again!”

As it was, Santos were beaten 2-1 in the semi-final by Corinthians. It is not the first time that muscle injuries have cropped up at this time of year for Neymar, with the running conspiracy theory again surfacing that he avoids playing over the period surrounding the 11th of March, when his sister’s birthday is. Neymar has played just twice around that date in the last decade.

Manager Pedro Caixinha denied that there was anything other than an injury, and Neymar is expected to be back for Brazil duty in ten days time. Barcelona have been heavily linked with a move for Neymar on a free this summer, but Director of Football Deco has moved to quash that story. Blaugrana coach Hansi Flick is also against bringing Neymar back, by all accounts.