RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec. 20 — Santos expects Neymar to stay at the club until at least next year’s FIFA World Cup, sporting director Alexandre Mattos said on Friday.
The Brazilian forward’s existing contract is due to expire on December 31 and Santos has made clear its intention to extend it. “He is at Santos because he wants to be,” Mattos told Globo Esporte.
“Financial matters have never been an obstacle or a reason for changes. Santos is in a rebuilding phase after being promoted from Serie B and Neymar knows that. I believe he is very happy here.”
Neymar is currently on vacation with his family, but his representatives are in talks with Santos president Marcelo Teixeira about a possible new deal.
Mattos said the 33-year-old had agreed to a greatly reduced salary when he joined Santos in January compared to his previous deal at Al Hilal. “I think it [the contract renewal] is something that will happen naturally,” Mattos said.
“This is his home, and it will always be open to him.” “He is on vacation, he needs to sort out some personal matters and the president is handling it the way it needs to be handled.”
Neymar made just 28 appearances for Santos across all competitions this year, scoring 11 goals and providing four assists. His injury-riddled campaign came after he spent more than a year on the sidelines with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament suffered in October 2023.
Brazil’s all-time leading scorer is in a race against time to be ready for the World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
He has not represented his country for more than two years and Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti has said he will only consider players who are fully fit and playing well for their clubs. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
