Brazil star Neymar could reportedly miss the rest of the 2022 World Cup as his ankle injury is worse than first feared.

The 30-year-old attacker sustained his injury in the Selecao's opening Group G win against Serbia and he subsequently missed the slender 1-0 victory over Switzerland on Monday.

Last week, Brazil's club doctor Rodrigo Lasmar revealed that Neymar has suffered lateral ligament damage to his right ankle along with a small bone edema and the Paris Saint-Germain star will now miss their final group game against Cameroon on Friday.

Head coach Tite has insisted that Neymar will recover in time to feature again at the tournament in Qatar along with right-back Danilo, who also picked up an ankle injury in the win over Serbia.

"I believe Neymar and Danilo will play in the World Cup," Tite told reporters. "I'm not in a position to speak about [medical information].

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"I can say that, not only about Neymar, but also about Danilo, both of their situations have evolved, but we believe both will be available to play at the World Cup."

However, according to The Mirror, there are concerns that Neymar's injury is worse than first feared and the attacker may have already played his final match in Qatar.

The reports adds that the 'best-case scenario' would see Neymar sidelined for around three weeks, meaning that he would face a race against time to recover for the final, should Brazil make it all the way.

Neymar, who has also been suffering with flu-like symptoms, is yet to have taken part in any weight-bearing exercises, with most of his rehabilitation and conditioning taking place in the pool.

Since sustaining his injury against Serbia, Neymar has also had a mixture of physiotherapy, electrotherapy and cryotherapy, and the attacker's progress is being closely monitored by the Brazilian medical team.

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Neymar has an unfortunate injury record at the World Cup, having previously missed the 2014 semi-final with a back problem, while he was not fully fit to represent the Selecao at the 2018 tournament due to a foot injury.

The PSG star is now a major doubt for Brazil's last-16 tie, but legendary forward Rivaldo believes that the five-time world champions can cope without their main man.

"The team has several other strikers who will undoubtedly come in an perform well, but Neymar is obviously the first choice," Rivaldo told reporters via The Sun.

"The group is a strong group and these things happen in football, especially in a high-level competition like the World Cup. But the team is prepared with great strikers and Tite won't have any problems.

"We want Neymar 100% but if it doesn't happen soon, we have others to replace him, a very strong team of 11 and a very good bench."

Brazil will be looking to maintain their 100% record in Qatar and secure top spot in Group G with a victory over Cameroon on Friday.

Written by
Oliver Thomas