Neymar has issued a public apology to his Santos teammate Robinho Júnior following an incident in which he slapped him during a training session. The two players appeared to have reconciled during a match on Tuesday.
This week, Santos announced that they would be conducting an investigation into the altercation between Neymar and the 18-year-old son of Robinho, who is a former striker for Real Madrid and Manchester City.
“If you want an apology in front of the press, here it is. I had already apologized to him and to his family. I crossed the line,” Neymar stated to reporters after Santos’ 1-1 draw against Recoleta in Paraguay.
Reports from Brazilian media indicate that the disagreement arose when Neymar, who is the all-time leading scorer for the national team, took offense at being dribbled past by his younger teammate during a training session at the club’s CT Rei Pelé facility on Sunday.
After the Copa Sudamericana match on Tuesday, Robinho Jr confirmed that the slap had indeed occurred but expressed that the matter was resolved, saying, “Everything is resolved. It’s a situation that upset me because he’s been my idol since childhood … I talked about it with my parents and I accept his apology.”
Neymar contributed to Santos’ goal in the match on Tuesday and shared a hug with Robinho Jr during the celebration. “He’s a boy I like very much, for whom I have a special affection. It happens in football; you argue with your friend, your brother,” Neymar remarked.
Despite ongoing injury challenges, Neymar is hopeful for a call-up by Brazil’s coach, Carlo Ancelotti, for the upcoming World Cup this summer. Now at the age of 34, he has not represented Brazil since October 2023, with Ancelotti expected to announce the final squad on May 18.
Robinho, a former Santos teammate of Neymar, is currently serving a nine-year prison sentence in Brazil after being convicted of rape in Italy in 2017.
