Neymar Limps Off with Thigh Injury as Santos Crash Out of Copa do Brasil Against Palmeiras

The image said more than any stat line: Neymar walking toward the locker room in tears, clutching the back of his right thigh. That's what remained of the "Clássico da saudade" for Santos, a match that ended 0-0 against Palmeiras and, with the 3-0 aggregate, knocked Peixe out of the Copa do Brasil quarterfinals.

The pain showed up near the end of the first half. Neymar started feeling discomfort in his right hamstring and could barely hold on for the remaining minutes before the break. By the time the referee blew the whistle to end the first half, it was already clear something was wrong: he headed straight down the tunnel, visibly in pain, and never came back out for the second half.

Cuca, the Santos coach, didn't have much room to maneuver. He brought on Rony in place of the number 10 and handed the captain's armband to Gabigol. The substitution, though, gave Santos no extra spark going forward. The clearest chance of the second half was a free kick from Carlos Miguel that also missed the target, and that was that: Palmeiras through to the semifinals, Santos left to wonder what might have been.

A Tie Marked by Controversy

What stands out is that Neymar played just 45 minutes across the entire quarterfinal tie. He didn't play in the first leg at Allianz Parque, which stirred up some controversy: reports circulated claiming he had refused to play on the stadium's artificial turf. Neymar himself came out to clarify on social media that he was in fact available, even suggesting the idea of wearing boots suited to that surface, but that the final call to hold him back was made by the coaching staff.

Now, with this fresh physical setback, the missed first leg fades into the background. The pressing question is how serious the hamstring problem actually is. Neymar will undergo medical exams this week to determine the extent of the injury, which will also shape Santos's upcoming matches in the Brazilian championship.

So far in 2026, Neymar has racked up 8 goals in 24 matches for Santos, a season that has mixed flashes of good form with the physical setbacks that have followed him for some time now. The question hanging over Santos remains the same as ever: how long will he be sidelined this time?

For now, Peixe is out of the Copa do Brasil, and Palmeiras moves on to the semifinals having settled the tie with authority. For Neymar, the story of this injury is only just beginning to be written.