Neymar stretchered off in tears as Brazilian suffers worrying injury on international duty

Neymar was stretchered off the pitch in tears on Tuesday night as Brazil took on Uruguay in CONMEBOL qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The forward appeared to sustain a serious knee injury in Montevideo, with the Al-Hilal star later being spotted leaving the stadium on crutches with a splint behind his left leg to limit his movement in the short term.

The 31-year-old fell to the ground after a tussle for possession with Uruguay star Nicolas de la Cruz just moments before half time. Replays showed that Neymar’s knee buckled beneath him as he dropped to the turf, with his teammates rushing to his aid as he shouted out in pain.

Play was immediately drawn to a halt by the referee to allow the ex-Barcelona star to receive treatment, though the winger looked in visible distress and fears have quickly grown that he could be set for an extended spell on the sidelines.

A stretcher was brought onto the field to prevent Neymar from putting any further weight onto the injury, with a buggy then carting him away for more thorough checks. The Selecao star was seen wiping away his tears as he left the pitch, in a moment that marked a terrible ending to an already-poor international break for Brazil.

Rodrigo Lasmar, the South American side’s team doctor, ruled that it was too early to know the true extent of Neymar’s injury and that a definite diagnosis would be made over the coming days. He explained: “We did all the tests and we will repeat them tomorrow.

“Those 24 hours are key to see how his knee will respond, how swollen it will be and what images will show. Let’s wait for the exams with calmness, evaluate with calmness and tell you once we have a diagnosis.”

Brazil went on to lose 2-0 to Uruguay to conclude a miserable international break for the nation, with Liverpool star Darwin Nunez scoring the opener before assisting De La Cruz’s goal in the second half. The result leaves Fernando Diniz’s side third in the CONMEBOL standings, with tough matches against Colombia and World Cup winners Argentina to come next month.

It remains to be seen whether Neymar will be available to compete in those games or if his worst fears come true and he is ruled out for the foreseeable future. The Al-Hilal playmaker will be hoping that the issue does not leave him in a race against time to be fit for the Copa America next summer.