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Al Hilal confirms Neymar will be out for four to six weeks with a thigh injury

Neymar will be out for the next four to six weeks with a thigh injury, his club Al Hilal have confirmed.

The 32-year-old returned from a 12-month layoff following an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury when he appeared as a substitute for the Saudi Arabian club in their AFC Champions League match against Al-Ain on October 21.

However, on November 4, he sustained a thigh injury in the final moments of Al Hilal's 3-0 win over Esteghlal and was substituted in the 87th minute of the game.

The Brazil international said after sustaining the injury: “It felt like a cramp, only very strong. I'll do some tests and hope it's nothing too serious.

“It’s normal for this to happen after a year. The doctors had already warned me, so I have to be careful and play more minutes.”

Brazil coach Dorival Junior left the striker out of his Brazil squad last week, saying: “We decided not to bring him in so as not to rush things. He is virtually fully recovered, but only had a few minutes, which weighed heavily on the decision.

“He was ready to be here, but he also understood the situation, the condition he is in, the lack of minutes on the field. We have to respect the club's process. A player of his level always has the pleasure of being here. That’s very important to us, even if he’s not in the best shape.”

Before his return, Neymar had not played since tearing the cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee while playing for Brazil in October 2023.

He had only played five games for Al Hilal before getting injured, having joined the Saudi Arabian side from Paris Saint-Germain for £80 million ($102 million) two months earlier.

Al Hilal next take on Steven Gerrard's Al Ettifaq on Friday.

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(Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

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