From Hate-Watching To Rooting For Him: Why Neymar Deserves A Fairytale Ending At His Last World Cup
· Free Press Journal
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, or as we all popularly know him, Neymar, is most probably playing his last football World Cup. Neymar is one of those breeds of footballers who are known to almost every human being on this planet.
Celebrated for his skills and adored for his gameplay, he has never achieved major success with his country, Brazil -- the most successful nation in football history.
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The Hatred For The Player…
Most of my previous years went into ‘hatewatching’ Neymar. It’s simple to explain because he is the guy who gave me my first real heartbreak. No crush, no girlfriend, but a footballer who didn’t even know I existed.
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Being a lifelong FC Barcelona fan, Neymar left the love of my life in 2017 and broke the 13-year-old’s heart. That departure began my absolute hatred for the player. It was the first taste of betrayal I ever faced, I would say. I celebrated every loss he had. Whenever injuries or setbacks came his way, I felt a certain smugness, convinced that leaving Barcelona had been a mistake. “I told you so” was the attitude I had with Neymar’s failures as a footballer.
There were rumours every now and then that Neymar wanted to return, but he never did. Although I grudgingly have to admit he developed into a better individual player at Paris Saint-Germain than he was at Barcelona, the resentment stayed with me for years.
In Love Again…
Like most Barcelona fans, Lionel Messi will always be my favourite player of all time. When he left the club in 2021, it wasn’t betrayal like Neymar’s departure had felt; it was just sadness.
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When Messi joined PSG, he reunited with one of his closest friends. Watching Neymar welcome him and support him through that transition slowly changed how I viewed him. The duo, along with Kylian Mbappé, never achieved the success many expected, but they produced moments football fans will remember for years.
Then came the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Brazil’s elimination against Croatia was heartbreaking, and Neymar once again found himself on the wrong side of footballing fate. Yet what changed everything for me wasn’t one match. It was the maturity that came with age, and the battles Neymar continued to fight despite everything life and football threw at him. Looking back, I realised I never hated Neymar the person; I only hated the decision he made.
Neymar’s Story…
Neymar’s most successful season came in 2014-15. Alongside Messi and Luis Suárez, he helped Barcelona win the treble and finished third in the Ballon d’Or rankings behind Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
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He repeated that finish in 2017, but by then it was clear he wanted more. Leaving Barcelona was his attempt to step out of Messi’s shadow and build his own legacy. It was a decision I hated at the time, but one I understand much better today. The prince was supposed to become football’s next king. Instead, fate had other plans.
His years at PSG were filled with flashes of brilliance but also constant setbacks. Injuries repeatedly interrupted his momentum and prevented him from fully delivering on the expectations that followed him throughout his career. Everyone remembers when he single-handedly took on Hansi Flick’s FC Bayern Munich in the UCL Final 2020 -- but again, the prince was unlucky.
Maybe, Just Maybe, He Deserves It More Than Anyone…
Neymar is Brazil’s all-time leading men’s goalscorer, surpassing legends such as Pelé, Ronaldo Nazário, Ronaldinho and Romário. Yet the trophies that define international greatness have always escaped him.
Despite playing in three Copa Americas and three World Cups, he has never lifted either trophy. That is perhaps the greatest contradiction of Neymar’s career. For all the talent, all the goals and all the unforgettable moments, football’s biggest prizes have remained just out of reach.
Whenever fit, Neymar has been a joy to watch. He represents the kind of football that makes people fall in love with the game in the first place. That is why I find myself hoping this story ends differently.
That is why I think if any player deserves one final moment of glory, it is Neymar. Not because he is perfect, and not because he is owed anything, but because football rarely produces players quite like him anymore.
Many football fans would disagree. For them, the 2026 World Cup is all about Cristiano Ronaldo's final shot at the trophy that has eluded him throughout his career. It is an understandable sentiment. Ronaldo has won almost everything football has to offer and remains one of the greatest players the sport has ever seen.
But perhaps that is why I find myself rooting for Neymar instead. Ronaldo has already experienced international glory with Portugal. Meanwhile, Neymar, despite all his talent and influence, still waits for the defining moment that would complete his story with Brazil.
Personally, for the first time in a long time, I feel at peace going into a World Cup. My GOAT, Lionel Messi, completed football by winning it in 2022. Everything that happened in Qatar felt like the perfect ending to a story I had invested years of my life in. Because of that, I can simply enjoy this tournament for what it is.
If Spain wins it and Lamine Yamal announces himself as football's next global superstar, I would not mind that either. Even Cristiano can have it because nobody would dare say he doesn't deserve his ultimate quest. But if I were granted one footballing wish for this World Cup, it would be Neymar lifting the trophy. Not for records or debates, but for the ending his story has always seemed to deserve.
The Last Dance…
After leaving PSG in 2023, Neymar’s career seemed to be heading towards an unceremonious end. He moved to Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, hoping for a fresh chapter. However, just weeks later, he suffered a devastating ACL and meniscus injury while playing for Brazil. The injury kept him out for more than a year, and many believed the Neymar story was finally over.
His time in Saudi Arabia never truly took off. Struggling for fitness and minutes, he eventually left and made an emotional return to Santos, the club where it all began for him. It felt less like a football transfer and more like a player trying to reconnect with himself. There were still injuries, still doubts, and still people waiting to say, “I told you so.”
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But Neymar kept going.
At Santos, he slowly rebuilt his body and confidence. Enough, at least, for legendary football manager Carlo Ancelotti to give him one final chance with Brazil. Three years after many had written off his international career, Neymar found himself back in the yellow jersey, heading to what is expected to be his last World Cup.
Maybe that is why this World Cup feels different. It is not about a wonderkid anymore. It is not about the prince who was supposed to inherit football from Messi and Ronaldo. It is about a 34-year-old footballer who has spent years fighting injuries, criticism and his own unfulfilled expectations, earning one last shot at the dream that has always escaped him.
Leading up to this World Cup, again, reports of Neymar being injured are surfacing online, and it is still uncertain how much he will feature in this World Cup. One thing is certain: Neymar is a fighter, and he will fight. And maybe, just maybe, football will finally give him the ending it has denied him for so long.