Neymar Jr sends message to former club Santos as they suffer relegation from Brazilian Serie A for first time
Former Santos striker Neymar Jr. has reacted to the club's first relegation from the Brazilian top flight.
It marked the first such ignominy in the once-mighty Brazilian club's 111-year-old illustrious history. Having been graced by the likes of the late Pele and Neymar, Santos entered the last day of the championship with the chance to stay afloat.
After 81 minutes, Santos were 1-1 with Fortaleza, while Vasco da Gama were 1-1 with Red Bull Bragantino, which meant that Vasco were going down. However, Serginho's 82nd-minute winner for Vasco, Fortaleza's Lucero's stoppage-time winner against Santos and Bahia beating Atletico Mineiro confirmed Santos' drop.
Having flirted with relegation in the last two seasons, Santos eventually went down, leaving Flamengo and Sao Paulo as the only top-flight sides never to be relegated.
Santos could have remained in the division had they beaten Fortaleza or Bahia failed to beat Atletico. Neither happened, and Santos finished 17th, a point behind 16th-placed Bahia (44), confirming their relegation.
Neymar's former club join America Mineiro, Coritiba and Goias in the second tier next season. The injured Al-Hilal superstar posted an image of himself wearing the Santos jersey and posted on Instagram:
"SANTOS SEMPRE SANTOS (SANTOS ALWAYS SANTOS)"
Neymar had 72 goals and 37 assists in 139 games for Santos between 2009 and 2013.
How has Neymar fared in club football after leaving Santos?
After making his name at Santos as a precocious teenager, Neymar moved to European shores in the summer of 2013. He joined Barcelona on a reported €88 million deal, kickstarting his sojourn in the continent.
In four successful seasons at the La Liga giants, the 31-year-old bagged 105 goals and 76 assists in 186 games across competitions. He won the continental treble in 2014-15 and two La Liga titles, among others, before leaving for PSG on a record €222 million transfer in 2017.
With the French giants, Neymar had 118 goals and 77 assists in 173 games across competitions in six seasons. He won five Ligue 1 titles and reached the UEFA Champions League final before moving to his current club Al-Hilal this summer on a reported €90 million move.
Neymar bagged a goal and three assists in five games across competitions before suffering a season-ending ACL injury while on international duty with Brazil in October.