Neymar has been hesitant to play in a spate of Santos’ games this term for a peculiar reason.
The Brazilian, who remains the world’s most expensive player, having joined Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona for £200m in 2017, returned to his boyhood club Santos in January upon the termination of his Al-Hilal contract.
Since rejoining Neymar has played 20 games in all competitions, registering six goals and three assists in that time.
Santos were promoted back to the Brazilian top flight last November after spending a campaign in Serie B following their first ever relegation.
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However, their return to Brazil's premier division has been tricky, with the club languishing in 16th, a place above the relegation zone and level on points with Vitoria in 17th, albeit with a game in hand.
In recent years Neymar has been plagued by injuries and in turn, could miss three more games this season, against Atletico-MG, Botafogo and Palmeiras, due to his refusal to play on artificial surfaces.
Artificial pitches tend to be harder than real grass, which in turn can result in an increased risk of injury. Indeed, turning becomes harder on the knees and ankles due to the tougher ground, while falls can have more of a damaging impact.
As per A Tribuna, Neymar admitted he had reservations about playing on Palmeiras’ artificial pitch.
Neymar said: “Playing at Allianz Park is practically impossible for me. Playing indoors is one of the things that bothers me as a player, regardless of my injuries.
“So playing at [Sao Paulo’s] MorumBIS, which is a very good [gress] pitch, is always better.”
Neymar, Brazil’s all-time leading goalscorer, missed a year of football upon rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee while at Al-Hilal.
Moreover, he left the field in tears after suffering an injury 34 minutes into his first Serie A encounter of the season, before missing five league games with a hamstring problem.
Chris Byfield