The 31-year-old made it through the international break unscathed, becoming his country’s all-time leading goalscorer in the process as he pulled away from legendary three-time World Cup winner Pele.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
Neymar may, however, be forced to sit out a crunch AFC Champions League clash with Navpakhor. Al-Hilal are due to face Uzbek opposition in continental competition on Monday. A South American superstar could be watching that contest from afar.
WHAT THEY SAID
Al-Hilal coach Jorge Jesus has told reporters when delivering a fitness update on his squad: “After today's training, we will decide the five foreign stars that will be in the game's list. Neymar and Michael have minor discomfort and we need to make sure that they are 100 per cent ready to play the game.”
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WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Neymar has suffered with muscular problems since leaving Paris Saint-Germain for Saudi Arabia, forcing him to miss four games. He did provide an assist when gracing a 6-1 demolition of Al-Riyadh on Friday, but now faces a race against time to figure in back-to-back games for his new Middle Eastern employers.
