As the club waits to confirm the arrival of a new coach following the dismissal of Pedro Caixinha and Jorge Sampaoli's refusal to return to Vila Belmiro, Santos suffered another defeat against Sao Paulo, preventing them from gaining momentum after beating Atlético Mineiro. This, however, was the first match without Neymar, who suffered another injury on the day he reached 100 appearances… and whose future at the club is starting to come into question.

Santos assessing the risks of renewing Neymar’s contract

Let’s remember that Neymar returned to Santos on a free transfer after terminating his contract with Al-Hilal, signing a deal through the end of the season with the Peixe, clearly aiming to regain momentum and make a return to Europe ahead of the 2026 World Cup. However, things haven’t gone as Neymar had hoped, and since his return, Neymar has only played nine matches for Santos over the course of nearly three months.

As a result, Marcelo Teixeira, current president of Santos, has started to question whether renewing Neymar’s contract is the right move… especially considering how difficult it will be for the club to avoid relegation in their return to the Brasileirão: “What we really need is to reflect, calculate, and analyze, based on the project being carried out, whether Neymar staying is the best option. That’s what matters most.”

Neymar might not play for Santos again

As of today, after suffering a recurrence of his latest muscle injury—which kept him from returning to action with Brazil for the last FIFA international window and sidelined him for about 40 days—it’s uncertain whether Neymar will play again before his contract with Santos ends. That scenario would undoubtedly be seen as a huge failure after he was welcomed back like the next Pelé.

Even so, César Sampaio, current interim coach of Santos, is hopeful Neymar can return soon: “We always want to have Neymar available. We know he’s been working on strengthening exercises; the timing hasn’t been ideal due to changes in his training. Now we believe, with this progress, he could be able to return as soon as possible.”