Neymar Angered by Substitution Error in Santos vs. Coritiba Match

Brasilia. Forward Neymar is very angry with the match officials after claiming he was substituted incorrectly in Santos' 3-0 defeat to Coritiba.

Brazil's head coach Carlo Ancelotti was aiming to make a good impression on the team ahead of the World Cup to be held this year, but in the 65th minute of the match, while he was temporarily off the field for treatment of a calf injury, the fourth official showed the number 10 jersey and brought in Robinho Junior in his place.

In fact, it appeared that Gonzalo Escobar should have come off the field instead of Neymar. Amidst this confusion, Neymar was shown a yellow card when he tried to re-enter the field.

He then snatched the player change paper from the hands of the match officials and showed it in front of the TV camera, which proved that Escobar should have been substituted out. Finally, Neymar left the field and handed over the captain's armband to Escobar.

Regarding this incident, Santos issued a statement on social media stating that 'the match official made a mistake when changing players'. The statement further said, 'This has been confirmed by television coverage and the notes used by the officials during the player change, it was an unimaginable mistake that was not corrected.'

Neymar is the all-time top scorer for Brazil with 79 goals, but due to injury problems, he has not played for the country since 2023. With the aim of securing a place in the World Cup, he has extended his contract with Santos until the end of 2026.

Brazil will start their campaign in the group stage of the World Cup, which will be held in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, by playing against Morocco on June 13, and will then face Haiti and Scotland.