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Brazil's veteran player Neymar Jr. announced his retirement from international football after the five-time world champions suffered a stunning 2-1 defeat to Norway in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
He finished his international career as the all-time leading scorer for Brazil. The 34-year-old forward brought the curtain down on his international career moments after Brazil's hopes of a sixth World Cup title were ended by Erling Haaland's late brace, with Neymar scoring a stoppage-time penalty that proved only a consolation. Reflecting on the end of his journey with the national team, Neymar told reporters, as quoted by ESPN UK, "I tried, I tried. Now it's over. I started here; I finished here." Neymar's penalty, converted in the 10th minute of added time after Leo Ostigard was penalised for a foul on Casemiro, was his first goal of the tournament. It also took his international tally to 80 goals and 59 assists in 130 appearances for Brazil, further extending his record as the nation's all-time leading scorer. His retirement brings to an end one of the most celebrated international careers in Brazilian football. During his time with the Selecao, Neymar helped the country lift the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2013 and won the Olympic gold medal on home soil at the Rio 2016 Games. The veteran forward's participation in the World Cup had remained uncertain until the final stages of squad selection because of fitness concerns. However, head coach Carlo Ancelotti included him in Brazil's 26-man squad, hoping his experience would inspire another deep run in the tournament. Instead, Brazil's campaign ended in dramatic fashion. Norway, appearing in the knockout stages with growing confidence, absorbed sustained Brazilian pressure before Haaland broke the deadlock in the 79th minute with a towering header from Andreas Schjelderup's cross. The Manchester City striker then sealed a famous victory moments later, calmly firing home his second goal of the night to put Norway 2-0 ahead and move level with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe on seven goals in the race for the Golden Boot. Neymar reduced the deficit from the penalty spot deep into stoppage time, but Brazil were unable to mount a comeback as Norway secured a historic first-ever World Cup quarter-final appearance. For Brazil, the defeat marked a seventh consecutive World Cup knockout loss to European opposition and their earliest World Cup exit since 1990, while Neymar's emotional farewell closed the chapter on an era that defined Brazilian football for more than a decade. (ANI)
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