Neymar Jr. limped off the pitch in Singapore on Sunday after only 12 minutes of action for the Brazil national team. He barely broke a sweat in the match against Nigeria before clutching his hamstring and heading to the bench for treatment. On Monday, we realized the extent of the injury.
As reported by Le Parisien and confirmed by the club’s official website, an MRI scan revealed that Neymar suffered a Grade 2 lesion to his left hamstring. PSG team doctors will continue to monitor the player and assess the injury in eight days. Their initial diagnosis will keep Neymar out of competition for four weeks but that could change depending on how the muscle heals, and as we’ve seen with Kylian Mbappé, these types of injuries can be difficult to heal. The Frenchman has been out with a muscle injury since August 25 and is only now expected to play in the upcoming match away at Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League on October 22 per Le Parisien.
If the timetable is accurate, Neymar will miss six games for Paris Saint-Germain as Culture PSG reports. Those games include:
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- Away at OGC Nice (October 18)
- Away at Club Brugge (October 22)
- Home against Olympique des Marseille (October 27)
- Away at Dijon FCO (November 1)
- Home against Club Brugge (November 6)
- Away at Stade Brestois (November 9)
There are some massive games in that list. Away at Brugge will likely determine whether PSG finish first or second in Group A of the Champions League. Neymar has already missed PSG’s first two Champions League matches this season due to suspension and it looks like he may miss most, if not all, of the group stage. Le Classique at home is always a match supporters circle on the calendar and it will be tough without Neymar who has three game-winning goals already this season.
Questions are starting to be asked about why Neymar was even in the squad for Brazil against Nigeria. He had already made his 100th cap for his country and this was in an international friendly. Brazil wasn’t trying to qualify for anything and it wasn’t a major tournament. Brazil’s FA cashed in, of course, but it’s not PSG who ultimately will pay the price for their negligence.
PSG should once again be on the vanguard of football and bar their players from appearing in international friendlies. Millions of dollars in assets at stake in games that serve no purpose but to line the pockets of a countries FA. Be bold Nasser and do the right thing @PSGTalk
— Marc Damon (@MarcDamon1) October 13, 2019
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