Neymar drops masterclass in his first Brazil game for six months as Pele's record broken
Neymar has passed a Brazil record to move clear of Pele as the nation's top goalscorer of all time with his return to action for his national side.
The 31-year-old has been on the move this summer in his club career with a switch from Paris Saint-Germain to Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal as Neymar became the latest in a long list of high profile players to move to the Middle East.
The forward played for the Seleção for the first time in six months last night as Brazil were on World Cup qualifying duty against Bolivia - and it proved to be a very memorable game for Neymar.
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Brazil beat Bolivia 5-1 as Neymar saw a tame early penalty saved, before Real Madrid star Rodrygo opened the scoring, with Barcelona's Raphinha doubling their advantage after the break.
Rodrygo netted his second and Brazil's third before the historic moment arrived just after the hour mark.
Neymar slotted home to add Brazil's fourth and with it, took him clear of Pele as the nation's top goalscorer of all time, prompting an emotional celebration which saw him point to the sky in tribute to the legend, who passed away last year.
Victor Abrego grabbed one back for Bolivia in the closing stages, before Neymar added his second in injury time with his 79th goal for Brazil and counting.
After the game, Neymar was presented with an award by the Brazilian Football Federation after the game, as well as a shirt with his name on the back and sporting the number 79 in recognition of the number of goals he has scored for his nation.
Neymar has reached 79 goals in 125 caps for his side, though Pele netted 77 strikes in only 92 games for Brazil.
But in his first match for Brazil in some six months, Neymar produced quite a masterclass to make history and go out on his own as the men's team's record goalscorer.
Watch how Neymar reached the feat below.
Neymar vs Bolivia 🇧🇴
— Neymoleque | Fan 🇧🇷 (@Neymoleque) September 9, 2023
His first match in 6 months & this is the performance he drops while breaking Pelé’s goal record for Brazil.
Enjoy the show 🪄🇧🇷pic.twitter.com/Bo4H6EMMXO
John McDougall