Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti has questioned whether Neymar will make his squad for the 2026 World Cup. The Italian has not selected the former captain since taking charge in May.
“If Neymar deserves to be (in the squad), if he is, well, better than others, he will play in the World Cup and that’s it. (But) I don’t have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday after the draw.
Brazil will play in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
“If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list we will make after the FIFA fixtures in March.”
Neymar, now 33, has not fully recovered since he tore his ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. Even so, he has been vital for Santos in its fight to stay in the Brazilian championship.
He scored a hat trick on Wednesday while carrying a muscular injury. He is also likely to feature again on Sunday against Cruzeiro.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a “referential player” at the moment. Neymar held that tag for years, especially after the 2014 World Cup on home soil.
“We have one of the world’s best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don’t want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
He also backed his team to lead their group.
“We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final and for that to happen you need to face very strong teams anyway.”
Brazil last won the World Cup in 2002, and would be desperate for their sixth title in 2026.
