The image of Neymar being carted off the field in his recent World Cup 2026 qualifier match against Uruguay is definitely not the type of news that Brazilian fans wanted to hear today.
The Al-Hilal star suffered the injury towards the end of the first half when he tripped and fell during a run, and he was seen holding his left knee. After leaving the pitch on a stretcher, Neymar ultimately left the Centenario Stadium on crutches, which is not a great look.
Without Neymar, Brazil’s lacklustre World Cup 2026 results continued, so they’ve fallen to third in the CONMEBOL standings.
Argentina then took advantage of Brazil’s slippage, as they’ve taken the solo top spot in the table with their fourth consecutive victory.
Here’s a recap of the latest set of CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier games, courtesy of SBOTOP.
Argentina in full control because of Messi
By being the only undefeated team left in the region, Argentina are back on top of the CONMEBOL standings after sharing the top spot with Brazil not too long ago.
Indeed, La Albiceleste are the cream of the crop, and the World Cup 2026 odds favour their chances of qualifying for the biggest football showcase that will take place in Mexico, Canada, and the USA.
For much of the competition, what we’ve learned from Argentina is that they’re no longer overly reliant on Lionel Messi, but the Inter Miami star probably felt the need to remind the whole world why he deserves the GOAT title, and he did just that.
In their 2-0 victory against Peru earlier today, Messi scored two goals in a span of 10 minutes in the first half.
The first goal was a volley from the top of the box that sailed into the top corner after a nifty dime by Nico Gonzalez, and the second was pretty much the same, as he hit from the same spot but lower that the Peruvian goalkeeper couldn’t reach.
Messi almost had a third after halftime when he had a tap-in, but it was ruled out after a VAR review. He also had several shots on target in the first half prior to the two goals that he scored.
Before this game, there were valid questions about his fitness because he had missed Inter Miami’s last five of the team’s six games due to a hamstring injury. But with his performance today, Messi has put those concerns to rest because he even managed to play the full 90 minutes.
Messi’s return is great news for La Albiceleste, but certainly bad for the rest of the chasing pack.
Uruguay suddenly in second after huge win
There’s now a three-way tie for second place, as Uruguay, Brazil, and Venezuela have seven points apiece, with La Celeste standing on top of the pile because they have a superior goal difference as of this writing.
Uruguay’s 2-0 win against Brazil is the huge reason why it is so, and La Celeste fans are in much better shape after an up-and-down start to this competition.
Darwin Nunez and Nicolas de la Cruz scored one goal each to put away the Samba Boys, but La Celeste’s defence deserves credit as well. Marcelo Bielsa’s men held Brazil to only two shots total, while they had five total and two of them on target.
Most of the first half was known for its lack of action, as neither side had an attempt on goal for the first 40 minutes, and the two teams combined for 17 fouls.
Brazil were more assertive in the second half after being down by 1-0 because of Nunez, but Uruguay’s backline held its own, and de la Cruz put in the final nail in the coffin.
Venezuela might finally make it
Speaking of Venezuela, they are also firmly back in the mix after a convincing 3-0 win against Chile, who were reduced to 10 men in the second half.
Yeterson Soteldo scored the first goal for Venezuela right before halftime. Salomon Rondon and Darwin Machis added two more goals for La Vinotinto when they took advantage of Marcelino Nunez’s dismissal in the 59th minute.
After dropping their first match, Venezuela have now recorded two wins and one draw in the qualifying tournament. And one can argue that their 1-1 draw against Brazil last Friday gave them a huge confidence boost to go on an undefeated run.
They still have a long way to go, but La Vinotinto are on course to directly qualify for the World Cup for the first time ever.
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