Is Neymar's World Cup dream already over? Carlo Ancelotti can't afford to take huge risk on unreliable Santos superstar

Neymar found himself back in headlines across Europe last week after he was brought up as a topic of debate on The Overlap. Gary Neville introduced a new 'Unpopular Opinions' segment, and kicked it off with the following statement: "No Premier League player in history is better than a prime Neymar."

Roy Keane and Ian Wright proceeded to counter by ranking Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney and Eden Hazard above Neymar, before Jill Scott inexplicably added Sadio Mane to the pot. It was, however, Rooney himself who delivered the

"I like Neymar but I’ve never seen him as a top, top player," the Manchester United icon said on the

The suggestion that Neymar was never a "top, top player" is absolutely ridiculous. For the best part of seven years, through his entire spell at Barcelona and early stages at Paris Saint-Germain, the Brazil forward was the only player who held a candle to Messi and Ronaldo. Rooney probably should have had a look at some statistics before being so brazen, too, because he only recorded 17 more goal contributions in his United career than Neymar managed in his stints at Barca and PSG (379 to 396), despite playing in 200 more games.

Had it not been for injuries, there wouldn't even be a debate. Unfortunately, they have always complicated Neymar's legacy, and continue to do so now. The Santos hero may never change the unfair narrative, because his dream of a World Cup swansong has all but evaporated as Carlo Ancelotti begins solidifying his plans for the 2026 tournament in North America.

Santos homecoming yet to spark change

Neymar had little choice but to retrace his steps to boyhood club Santos in February last year, after his contract at Al-Hilal was terminated.

To some extent, the huge outlay on Neymar's salary paid off for Santos. He scored 11 goals and laid on five assists in the 2025 season, playing a

He missed 18 matches in all competitions while dealing with a persistent hamstring problem,

Despite the turbulence, Santos then decided to

Retirement bombshell

Although Santos had to make do without Neymar for the start of the 2026 season, he was back on the pitch by mid-February, stepping off the bench in a 6-0 Campeonato Paulista rout of Velo Clube. He set up one of Gabriel ‘Gabigol’ Barbosas' two goals, and showed no signs of lost confidence, dipping into

However, he was also guilty of a horror miss from barely eight yards out, and gave possession away 15 times. It was not a particularly encouraging performance, with the sub-par standard of the opposition also factored in.

The 34-year-old was also questioned about his physical condition after the game, and

Neymar then concluded with a major bombshell. "I don't know what the future holds for me. It's possible that in December I'll want to retire. I'm living day by day," he added. "This year is crucial, not only for Santos, but also for the Brazilian national team and for me."

Going public with retirement thoughts raised instant doubts over whether he really believed he could get back to 100%. Perhaps he intended to hammer home the fact it would be his last World Cup, but It's likely that the revelation just served as another red flag for Ancelotti, who had already said in December

More frustration follows Vasco masterclass

Neymar was selected to start Santos' next game in the Campeonato Paulista: a quarter-final tie against Brazilian second tier club Novorizontino. A favourable game on paper turned out to be anything but in reality for Santos as they slumped to a dismal 2-1 defeat, and Neymar failed to leave a lasting impact on the contest, recording only one successful cross and a dismal pass completion rate of 73%, with

There was

The Santos academy jewel silenced some of critics four days later,

Frustration nearly always follows, though, and this time was no different. Neymar was a surprise last-minute absentee from Santos' next league game away at Mirassol, which Ancelotti reportedly attended purely to check in on his progress. Citing workload management as an excuse, Neymar did not even show up at the stadium - a call that was, understandably, "very poorly received" by the Brazilian football federation (CBF), according to

Ancelotti lays down the gauntlet

Although Neymar returned for a subsequent meeting with Corinthians, and bagged an assist as Santos battled to a 1-1 draw, it was not nearly enough to win Ancelotti over. He couldn't muster a shot on target, despite playing the full 90 minutes, and only won three of his 11 ground duels, with two of Ancelotti's assistants watching on.

Sure enough, the former Real Madrid boss did not include Neymar in his final 26-man Brazil squad for the March international break. "Neymar is not at 100% and therefore he is not on the list," Ancelotti said when pushed to explain the Santos captain's omission. "Neymar is not at 100% of his capability. If he can be at 100% physically, he can be there. Neymar could be at the World Cup. Neymar has to keep working, playing, showcasing his qualities and maintaining good physical condition."

All things considered, that was a more than fair message. Ancelotti didn't have to leave the door open for Neymar at all, and he should have been grateful for that. Suffice it to say, though,

"I'm going to speak out here, because I can't just let this pass," he told the media at an event in Sao Paulo. "Obviously, I'm upset and sad not to have been selected. But the focus remains the same, day after day, training session after training session, match after match. We'll achieve our goal. There's still one final squad announcement to go and the dream lives on. That's it, we're in this together."

Neymar is delusional if he genuinely believes he deserves to be included ahead of any of the eight forwards Ancelotti picked, even including Zenit Saint Petersburg's Luiz Henrique, who has scored only three goals in 20 Russian Premier League matches this term. Henrique pales in comparison ability wise, but he's far more reliable.

The staggering sense of entitlement doesn't help Neymar's cause. Indeed,

Brazil don't need him anymore

Neymar shrugged off the disappointment to score his third goal of the season in a Serie A clash with Internacional last week, but Santos still slumped to a 2-1 defeat. The final result

The club immediately announced former coach Cuca as Vojvoda's successor, and he has quickly been brought up to speed on how to handle Neymar. Cuca left the Brazil international out of his first game back at Cruzeiro, which ended in a 0-0 stalemate, explaining to reporters: "I spoke with him separately. He won't play on Sunday because he played two games in a row. We can't take that risk."

If Santos can't take that risk, how on earth can Brazil? The

Even if he conjured up four successive hat-tricks, Ancelotti can't put his trust in a half-fit Neymar. He doesn't need to, either. Brazil are blessed with unrivalled depth upfront, led by Vinicius Junior, who plays in Neymar's favoured left-wing slot.

Gabriel Martinelli is also a better option on that side, and Neymar is well behind Raphinha, Matheus Cunha and Joao Pedro in the No.10 reckoning. Ancelotti could take him as an impact substitute, but the pressure to use him more frequently could easily create a distracting sideshow that Brazil must avoid in their pursuit of a record-extending sixth star.

Embrace a cheerleader role

Ancelotti should continue to take a hard stance on Neymar as the noise increases three months out from the World Cup. Brazil legend Romario added to it over the weekend, telling

Neymar also has the

That last line was true between 2010, the year Neymar won the first of his 128 caps, and 2022, when he scored a superb solo goal against Croatia in the quarter-finals of the Qatar World Cup. In a lean era for a Brazil squad lacking the talent of past iterations, Neymar was the undisputed talisman; he almost single-handedly kept them competitive and earned a place in history by breaking Pele's national team goals record.

But Neymar hasn't played against world-class opposition in a very long time, and even if he was fully fit, the re-adjustment period required on the biggest stage would be too long. His standing in the game would be better served if he withdrew himself from the running now and became a cheerleader for his country instead of a stage five clinger.

The appreciation he is due from tiresome pundits like Rooney will come eventually, because of the scarcity of true mavericks in the modern game. Neymar is one of the greatest players of his generation and has nothing to prove to anyone. A missing World Cup winners' medal doesn't change that.