The last time Neymar played for Brazil, Lewis Hamilton hadn’t won his seventh F1 title yet. That’s how long 981 days is. Wednesday night in Miami, he finally pulled on the yellow jersey again — 20 minutes as a substitute in a 3-0 win over Scotland — and the most telling thing about his return wasn’t the ovation or the chants. It was that Brazil didn’t really need him.
Not the way they used to, anyway.
Carlo Ancelotti brought Neymar on in the 76th minute with the game already buried. Vinicius Junior had taken care of that. The 25-year-old Real Madrid star tore Scotland apart from the opening whistle, scoring twice and probably should have had three if VAR hadn’t ruled he fouled Jack Hendry before slotting home in the first half. He pounced on a defensive gift for his first goal, then added a header in stoppage time before halftime that effectively ended the contest.
At one point, Vinicius turned to the stands and waved his arms, asking the Brazilian fans to get louder. They did. The guy is the main character now.
Meanwhile, Neymar spent most of the night on the sideline, warming up after Brazil went up 3-0 around the hour mark. The crowd chanted his name, sure. He’s still the all-time leading scorer in Brazil’s history with 79 goals. But he’s also a 34-year-old who hadn’t played for his country since late 2023, coming off a five-week calf injury that drew a “work-from-home” crack from Brazil’s president earlier this week. That label stung, and it stuck.
Ancelotti’s decision to bring Neymar to the World Cup wasn’t universally popular. There were questions about fitness, about timing, about whether a player who’d been sidelined that long deserved a roster spot over a younger option. But with Vinicius playing like this, Neymar’s role shifts. He’s not the guy Brazil leans on anymore. He’s a weapon off the bench. A luxury, not a necessity.
What Vinicius means now
Nobody has scored a World Cup hat trick for Brazil since Pele in 1958. Vinicius came close Wednesday. He hit the post, he forced a good save from the Scotland keeper in the second half, and he made life miserable for a defense that never looked comfortable when he had the ball. He’s put himself firmly in the Golden Ball conversation.
That’s the thing about this Brazil team. For years, the creative burden sat entirely on Neymar’s shoulders. If he didn’t show up, the attack often didn’t either. Now Vinicius can carry that load. And he’s not alone — the squad has depth Ancelotti can rotate without losing much bite.
Neymar’s 14th World Cup appearance was a milestone, and the celebration in the stadium was real. But the story of the night wasn’t about a comeback. It was about the guy who made the comeback feel optional.
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