The Brazilian Undisputed Superstar? Neymar's World Cup Countdown Challenge
While the French winger received the 2025 Ballon d'Or in the autumn months, Neymar was undergoing therapy for his third injury of the year - while participating in an online poker tournament.
The veteran Brazilian ace ultimately finished as second place, collecting around Ā£73,800 in prize money.
It was some consolation on a day when he had to watch the player who once replaced him at Barcelona claim the award he had long hoped to win.
Since returning to his youth team Santos in January, the experienced attacker has failed to live up to expectations, attracting more attention for similar incidents than for his on-field performances.
His return home after a dozen campaigns away was meant to be a chance for him to rediscover his best and, crucially, revive a love of football that seemed lost after disappointing periods with Paris St-Germain and Al Hilal.
Instead, it has been generally unsatisfactory for everyone concerned.
This reflects the situation that the primary concern being asked right now in Brazil is if Neymar will be part of the 2026 World Cup.
He's running out of time.
"All players have to prove that they are prepared. The clock is ticking [for him]," Brazilian legend Tostao stated in his regular feature.
On Wednesday, Brazil manager the Italian tactician announced his squad for the forthcoming matches against Korea Republic and Japan and, yet again, Neymar was absent.
"The Prince", as he was nicknamed when received at Santos in a reference to the legend PelƩ, is still awaiting his debut under Ancelotti, having been missing from the Selecao for two years.
He also remains an fitness concern for the autumn fixtures, which, in the most pessimistic outlook, will leave him with only two exhibition games in March 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the announcement of the final list for the World Cup.
"Over a decade and a half, Neymar was Brazil's unquestioned talisman, shouldering huge responsibility on his own," Brazilian icon Cafu remarked.
"But no one wins the World Cup alone. Putting all our hopes on him at the present time is challenging because he finds it hard to even play three games in a row."
'Technical exclusion raises serious questions about Neymar'
Not just has Neymar had multiple fitness issues since his homecoming - he's missed 47% of Santos' matches this season - but, when he was available for selection, he was a far cry from the player who during his peak competed with the Argentine maestro and the Portuguese icon.
Of his several attacking returns so far, half have come against teams from divisions below Brazil's first division - a scoring contribution against a lower-league side, followed by a three goal involvements versus another lower-division opponent, all in the regional competition.
As Santos fight relegation in the top division, the playmaker no longer seems to be the decisive factor he previously represented.
Despite that, Ancelotti has asserted that the forward has plenty of time to show he is prepared for the World Cup.
"His goal must be to be ready in June. It doesn't matter if he's in the squad in autumn, November or March," the coach told L'Equipe newspaper.
Ancelotti caused local debate last month by reportedly trying to shield Neymar, suggesting the star had been omitted from the team over fitness concerns.
But then Neymar himself challenged the claim, saying he "was left out for technical reasons; it has nothing to do with my physical condition."
In terms of public perception, it definitely didn't help for Neymar.
"If the player we have placed all our hopes on to deliver the World Cup is left out for performance issues, clearly something isn't right," Cafu commented.
Is a Ronaldo-style comeback possible for Neymar?
Research from a leading polling institute found that Brazilians are divided over whether Neymar should be included for his next global tournament.
With his record tally, Neymar is Brazil's all-time top scorer, but he hasn't helped his case much with his behaviour on the pitch either.
He seems greater frustration than usual, having argued with fans multiple times in venues - it occurred in successive games in July.
The following month, the striker was left in tears after Santos endured a six-goal home defeat by their rivals - the biggest loss of his career.
When questioned by a journalist about his physical state in a post-match interview, he also lost his patience: "Again with this, mate? I've answered this repeatedly already."
The identical inquiry has been posed to his father and agent Neymar Sr as well.
"Neymar's strategy was to spend a limited period at Santos. To what end? To recover. If Neymar was able to feature, so be it," he earlier stated, causing displeasure among followers.
There's remaining optimism, however, that Neymar's best days remain possible and that he will be able to return to prominence the same way forward Ronaldo "FenƓmeno" did in the 2002 World Cup to overcome skepticism and physical setbacks to lead Brazil to the World Cup title.
The former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan legend sees parallels.
"He's a vital player for Brazil - there's no one else like Neymar," Ronaldo stated during a recent appearance with the forward in Sao Paulo.
"It's an misrepresentation from a minority who believe he's disregarding his fitness rehabilitation.
Those who have been in football recognize fully how challenging it is to come back from an injury and recover form and self-belief. He's moving forward."
The Brazilian forward has a critical period ahead to prove that he's not the prince who relinquished his status.