With Neymar back and feeling good, Brazil as dangerous as ever

DOHA, Qatar — It was just a couple of days ago that Neymar evoked James Brown when he tweeted, "I feel good, I knew that I would now" accompanied by a smiley face emoji and two photos of himself at a Brazil training session.

Those good vibes were more than clear Monday night at Stadium 974 when the 30-year-old superstar scored his first goal of this World Cup to help spark a Brazil scoring barrage. A Seleção thumped South Korea, 4-1, to advance to the quarterfinals where it will face Croatia on Friday.

Neymar, who was sporting a new 'do of bleach-blonde hair for the round of 16, had missed the past two matches with an ankle injury he sustained in Brazil’s opening match against Serbia. A rough tackle by Nikola Milenković left him in pain, and he was subbed out in the 80th minute. He later described the moment as "one of the hardest of my career" in an Instagram post. Photos of his swollen ankle were not for the faint of heart.

He even admitted after Monday’s match that he feared he might have to miss the rest of the World Cup, and thanked his teammates and family for giving him "strength where I could not find it."

On Monday, Neymar’s goal against South Korea came on a penalty kick with Brazil already leading 1-0 in the 13th minute, after Richarlison was fouled in the box. Neymar may have missed the previous two games, but he certainly wasn’t rusty, even though the referee took a second to make sure he understood the penalty kick rules. Neymar winked at him, kissed the ball and put it down, wound up, stutter-stepped and made an easy shot into the bottom right corner past South Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu.

It was Neymar's 76th career goal for Brazil, one short of Pele's all-time record.

"He provides a competitive advantage," former player and current assistant coach César Sampaio said. "He makes a difference on the pitch. He is a driving force … he motivates other players and we are very happy to have him back."

Watching Neymar and this wildly fun Brazil squad — a group that could teach a class on showmanship — is like being in the middle of one big dance party that never stops. Four different players scored goals in the first 37 minutes, including Vinícius Jr. (7th minute), Richarlison (29th) and Lucas Paquetá (36th). After each one, players celebrated together near the goal as if they had just won the World Cup. It was a constant theme, and at one point, Tite joined in on the sideline. The Brazilian manager said this would be his last World Cup, and the players, who see him as a father figure, want to win it all for him. He’s also done his players a solid, having played all 26 of them through four matches.

Neymar, who was named Man of the Match, also could be running out of time to win it all. Although this might not be the Paris Saint-Germain playmaker’s last World Cup, he understands that his time to win as Brazil’s leader is now, especially with so many rising stars like Vini Jr. primed to take over. And he’s laser-focused.

"I can’t be 100% satisfied with the game today," Neymar said. "We need to aim for more."

A Seleção has won a record five World Cups, but none since 2002. In 2014, Neymar was injured in a quarterfinal match against Colombia and didn’t play in a 7-1 semifinal loss to Germany. In 2018, Brazil was ousted by Belgium in the quarterfinal. A photo of the background of Neymar’s phone — which is of the World Cup trophy — went viral last week. 

After the match, the team paid tribute to Pelé, who was hospitalized and diagnosed with a respiratory infection earlier this week. A flip-flop wearing Neymar brought out a banner with a picture of the football legend and three-time World Cup winner and the group took a team photo with it at midfield.

Brazil players then walked over to their rowdy section of adoring fans, waving and spraying water bottles in celebration. Dani Alves gave Neymar a piggyback ride.

Although Neymar’s funky music tweet may have been meant as a lighthearted update, it was more like a warning shot. Not just for South Korea at Stadium 974, but the rest of the field here in Qatar. With Neymar healthy, Brazil, which is ranked No. 1 in the world by FIFA, is clearly a threat to challenge other tournament favorites Argentina and France.

"He had a great performance, he’s now recovered and ready for new challenges," Sampaio said. "With Neymar, we can reach our full potential."

Read more from the World Cup:

• Brazil vs. South Korea highlights
• Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham showing superstar composure for England
• Mbappe is already a World Cup legend
• France has the star power to repeat as champion
• England vs. Senegal highlights: Harry Kane & Co. dominate in 3-0 win
• Even after painful knockout, U.S. players take moment to appreciate World Cup journey
• Best of the World Cup so far: Top goal, save, player, team and more
• World Cup 2022 odds: Lines for remaining teams to win in Qatar

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Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.