Neymar has finally ended a 16-month drought and scored his first goal since October 2023 with Al-Hilal, and his first goal since he returned to Santos two weeks ago. It took him three games, two draws and one defeat - and a lot of hard tackles - but finally Neymar has scored again with his former club, where he played between 2009 and 2013, winning the Libertadores in 2011.
It was during a 3-1 victory against Água Santa, in the group stage for the Copa Paulista. Neymar scored the first goal of the match with a penalty that he himself caused. He said he was "anxious to score and wanted to dedicate the goal to fans and his family.
"We're helping each other, Santos are helping me, they've opened doors for me to rediscover soccer, to rediscover joy", said the 33-year-old player, who went on to score 136 goals in 225 appearances between 2009 and 2013, turning him into a worldwide star before signing for Barcelona.
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