Video shows Neymar being absolutely brutalised by Serbia, it's no surprise he got injured
A viral video has captured every time Neymar was fouled by Serbia players in Brazil's 2-0 defeat on Thursday night.
Neymar has been Brazil's talisman for so many years now but he had a relatively quiet opening game by his stands.
Instead it was Spurs striker Richarlison who proved to be the hero for Tite's side, scoring twice - including an outrageous acrobatic strike that may well be goal of the tournament so far.
Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar ended up coming off for Antony in the 80th minute after picking up an ankle injury.
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And it's no surprise that Neymar was injured after seeing the amount of punishment he received.
Early on the former Barcelona man had his shirt pulled over his head after a Serbia player didn't fancy waiting until the end of the game for the swap.
But it got much worse for Neymar, who had lumps kicked out of him by the Eastern European outfit. He has developed a reputation for diving and rolling around but he was well within his rights here after being badly targeted.
Público da “Choquei”:
— Brenno :): (@eaebrenno) November 25, 2022
“Ain o Neymar só sabe cair”
Realidade: pic.twitter.com/wY6EoveQh5
In total, the 30-year-old was fouled a ridiculous nine times in the win - four more than any other player in the tournament so far.
A strong tackle from Nikola Milenkovic was the final nail in the coffin for Neymar, who had his face covered as he sat on the bench and received treatment.
Neymar has had plenty of ankle issues in recent times and his right foot looked incredibly swollen when he took off his boot.
The Brazil doctor has said he will miss Brazil's last two group games, though Tite stressed they were "confident Neymar will continue playing in the World Cup".
Neymar's ankle 👀 pic.twitter.com/XrvvaNz7CK
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 24, 2022
Commenting on the injury on Instagram, Neymar wrote: "Nothing in my life came easy and I've always had to work for my dreams and goals.
"I have never wished anyone anything bad and always helped who needed.
"I'm injured, yes it's not nice, it will hurt but I'm sure I will have the chance to come back because I'll do everything possible to help my country, my team-mates and myself."
Brazil take on Switzerland on Monday, before facing Cameroon in their final group game on Friday.
Topics: Neymar, Brazil, Football World Cup
Josh Lawless