Neymar announces Santos return in emotional video
Updated 31/01/2025 at 16:54 GMT
Brazilian superstar Neymar has announced his return to boyhood club Santos in an emotional video released on X. The Brazilian club responded with the message "Your home awaits." Neymar has been playing in Saudi Arabia since 2023 but has found playing time hard to come by due to injuries. He will now look to revive his career on home soil after a period plagued by injuries.
Relive Neymar’s winning penalty for Brazil against Germany for gold at the 2016 Olympics
Video credit: TNT Sports
Neymar has announced that he has completed a remarkable return to his boyhood club Santos in a post on social media.
The forward shared an emotional video on X in which he revealed that he had decided to "sign the contract with Santos Futebol Clube".
The Brazilian club, who Neymar left to join Barcelona in 2013, responded with the message "Your home awaits."
The 32-year-old moved to Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal SFC in 2023 from Paris Saint-Germain, but has suffered several niggling injuries since.
A cruciate ligament issue and a hamstring tear have limited him to just two appearances this season, both of which have come in the Asian Champions League.
Neymar still holds the record as the world's most expensive player after his reported £200 million move from Barcelona to PSG in 2017.
In the 2023/24 season, he played just five times for his new club, scoring two goals on his debut against Al Riyadh before adding another against Al Shabab.
However, his season was curtailed in October 2023 when he suffered a cruciate ligament injury.
Now, Neymar will return to his native Brazil, back to the club where he made his name.
He made 177 appearances and scored 107 goals for Santos in his first spell.
He moved to Barcelona in the summer of 2013 for a reported €57 million, going on to make 123 appearances for the Catalan side.
He would go on to score 68 goals as he formed a memorable trio with Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi at the Camp Nou.
Santos confirmed their prodigal son's return on Friday afternoon, with a cinematic short film captioned "Eu vou, mas eu volto [I go, but I come back] #ThePrinceIsBack".
The video showed a throne in the middle of the Urbano Caldeira Stadium pitch, with 'Pele 10' etched into it, overlaid with highlights from Neymar's first spell at the club.
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