Santos completed one of the most dramatic survival missions in recent Brazilian football history, defeating third-placed Cruzeiro 3–0 on the final day of the season to secure their place in Serie A on Sunday night.

At the center of the escape was Neymar — emotional, visibly in pain, yet decisive when Santos needed him most.

The 33-year-old forward, who returned to the club in January, has endured a difficult year recovering from a serious knee injury, but his influence in the closing rounds proved crucial.

He delivered a series of standout performances: scoring in a 3–0 win over Sport Recife, firing a hat-trick against Juventude in another 3–0 result, and acting as the creative heartbeat in the decisive victory over Cruzeiro at Vila Belmiro.

Those wins lifted Santos to 12th place with 47 points, rescuing a season that had once threatened to end in what would have been only the second relegation in the club’s storied history.

PUNCH Online reports that in Sunday’s game, Thaciano netted twice in two minutes for the home team, in the 26th and 28th minute, before J. Schmidt sealed it on the one-hour dot in the second half of the game.

Their first drop came in 2023, breaking a 111-year record of uninterrupted participation in the topflight.

The relief was clear across the stadium — and especially in Neymar’s reaction.

After the final whistle, he dropped to his knees in the centre circle, overcome with emotion.

Despite weeks of pain from a meniscus and knee problem, he had insisted on playing through the final stretch. Fans witnessed him later circling the ground, applauding the supporters who stood by the team during its tense battle for safety.

Santos’s late surge capped a season in which Neymar featured in only 19 league matches but still produced eight goals and several decisive contributions.

His insistence on playing through discomfort was confirmed afterward, when he publicly acknowledged the physical toll.

Tribuna on Monday quoted Neymar as saying, “I came for this, to try to help the best way I can. These have been tough weeks for me.

“I thank those who were with me to lift me up. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have played these matches because of these injuries, this knee problem. I need to rest, and then we will have this knee surgery.”

He did not disclose medical details or a surgery date, though he remains hopeful of earning a place in Brazil’s 2026 World Cup squad.

The club’s captain on his official X account sharing images and a small caption, wrote in Portuguese, “Deus, OBRIGADO!” which is English means, “God, Thank You.”

Coach Carlo Ancelotti has yet to select him since taking charge in May, but the forward’s club form in the final run-in has revived national interest.

Sports Star on Monday also noted that Santos fans will remember this escape as one of the club’s great modern survival stories — and as a chapter where their most famous academy product once again carried the badge with pride, even while injured.

Sunday’s victory not only sealed safety but also reaffirmed Neymar’s enduring bond with the club that shaped him.

PUNCH Online reports that in 2013, Neymar departed Santos for Europe, signing a record-breaking deal with Spanish powerhouse Barcelona. He later continued his journey at Paris Saint-Germain in France, and eventually secured a move to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

In January 2025, Brazilian star Neymar on Monday ended his injury-plagued 18 month stay in Saudi Arabia as his club, Al-Hilal said they had “agreed to terminate the player’s contract by mutual consent.”