Neymar and Santos: From Glory to Serie B Despair

 Neymar and Santos: From Glory to Serie B Despair

Jose Quintero of Liga de Quito and Tomas Pochettino of Fortaleza compete for the ball during the Copa CONMEBOL Sudamericana 2023 final match between LDU Quito and Fortaleza at Estadio Domingo Burgueño Miguel on October 28, 2023 in Maldonado, Uruguay.(Image-Getty)

Judging by Neymar's post on social media Instagram, the Brazilian star is not in a good mood. There is no smile on the face. It's not just about being sidelined with an injury, Neymar had another upset last night. Santos were relegated to the second division after losing 2-1 to Fortaleza in their last match in Brazil's top league, Serie A.

Neymar came up from this club in the light of the foot lamp of football. The three-time World Cup winner, the late legendary Pele, has become a star from Santos. Santos' demotion happened a few days before the anniversary of Pele's death. Pele died last year on December 29 at the age of 82. Santos' demotion, less than a year after the legend's departure, is understandable for Neymar. In his Instagram story, Neymar wrote, "Santos will always be Santos." We will laugh again.'

However, there is no smile on the face of Santos supporters for now. After relegation to 'Serie B' was confirmed, fans set fire to several cars in the street outside Santos' ground Villa Belmiro. For the first time in the club's 111-year history, fans could not extinguish the fire burning in their chests. After Santos' name was removed from the list of clubs that have never been relegated from Brazil's top league, only Flamengo and Sao Paulo remain. Santos had to accept the relegation after dropping to 17th place in the 20-team league without a win in 5 consecutive matches.

Palmeiras secured their second consecutive Serie A title with a 1-1 draw with Cruzeiro on the same day. 17-year-old forward Ndrik put Palmeiras ahead with his 11th goal of the season. Real Madrid is pretty sure to pull him into the team. Real will sign a professional contract with him after he turns 18 in July next year. After winning, Endrik said, 'People are saying, I won this. But I couldn't win it alone. At the beginning of the year, I couldn't hold my temper by listening to people. I realized later, it was not right to do it. That is, I have become a little bit.

Pele brought Santos to global fame. The club won 10 state championships and 6 Brazilian league titles during the fifties and sixties, in addition to making a name for themselves on the world tour. In 1962 and 1963, he won the Copa Libertadores, also known as the Champions League of South America. In these two years, Santos also won the Intercontinental Cup, a competition between the best clubs in Europe and South America. Santos is a total of 8 champions in the Brazilian Serie A. Won the Copa Libertadores three times.