Neymar Wants To Sign A Longer Contract With Santos

JAKARTA - According to his father and agent, Neymar da Silva Santos Sr., Neymar wants to continue playing at Santos after this summer.

The Brazilian star rejoined his boyhood club on January 31, 2025 by signing a contract until June 2025 after ending his contract with Saudi Arabia's Pro League club, Al Hilal, with mutual approval.

The injury left Neymar playing only seven games for Al Hilal since joining the club with a 90 million euro transfer from Paris Saint-Germain in August 2023.

"Our project is not only for five months, it is a contract we are considering to update."

"We didn't come here to compete for five months, this is to give Santos the opportunity to restructure himself, to find partners for the club to rebuild himself," Neymar Sr. told TNT Brasil.

Neymar, 33, scored his first goal for Santos since returning to Brazil when he converted the penalty he won in a 3-1 win over Agua Santa in the Campeonato Paulista match, Monday, February 17, 2025, early morning WIB.

He celebrated his goal by kissing the team's badge on his T-shirt. The former Barcelona star also provided Guilherme with a pass for Santos' third goal.

"An important win, great team, let's go forward Santos," Neymar wrote on Instagram.

Neymar, who has so far not managed to play 90 minutes in one game for Santos, said he was more focused on the present than thinking about his future.

When asked about his father's comments, Neymar was relaxed.

"Let's just relax. This is a contract we made, not just between the two of us. One is helping the other."

"Santos opened the door for me to get to know football again, with my joy. I didn't sign a long-term contract because I didn't know how I would come back, how I would feel during those months. Anything could happen," said Neymar.

Meanwhile, President Santos, Marcelo Teixeira, hopes that Neymar will remain in the club until at least the 2026 World Cup.

However, so far there is still a desire from Neymar to return to playing in Europe next season.

In addition, he used his time at Santos to restore his technical and physical abilities after an ACL injury that kept him out for more than a year until October 2024.

Neymar had reason to be careful. He has just recovered from the hamstring injury he experienced in November 2024 in his second match after returning to play for Al Hilal after a year of absence due to ACL's tearing and washing in his left knee.

"As long as I'm on the pitch, I'll give you 100 percent of my ability. Let's just relax, let's wait for these moments, enjoy these games."

"Santo knows how much I love this club, how much I respect them. This is the beginning of a great era for Santos."

"I'm sure Santos will rise again and return to the top," said Neymar.

Apart from that, Santos has returned to Brazil's Serie A for the 2025 season, a year after being relegated for the first time.

Brazil's highest level competition will kick off the 2025 season on March 29, 2025.