The Brazilian appeared to leave the field in tears
Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed that Neymar suffered a recurrence of a metatarsal injury in his right foot during Wednesday’s game with Strasbourg, leaving him in doubt for their game against Manchester United next month.
The Brazilian received on-field treatment after appearing to twist his ankle just after the hour mark in the French Cup game before hobbling off the pitch minutes later.
Though it was initially assumed he had damaged his ankle, Neymar was taken to hospital, where precautionary tests showed he had injured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot.
PSG released a statement early on Thursday to confirm news of the injury – which appears to be similar to the one he picked up in February of last year.
Communiqué médical.
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_inside) January 24, 2019
On that occasion, Neymar was missing for the final 15 games of PSG’s season, including their second leg of their Champions League last-16 exit at the hands of Real Madrid. He only returned to action for Brazil’s World Cup warm-up game against Austria in June.
‘Initial examinations have revealed a painful recurrence of his injury to the fifth metatarsal of his right foot,’ the PSG statement read. ‘The treatment of this injury will depend on how it evolves over the next few days. All options can be envisaged at this time.’
Though it is still to early to determine the length of time Neymar will be out of action for, it seems highly likely that he will miss the Champions League last 16 meeting with Manchester United next month. The first leg takes place at Old Trafford on February 12, with the return leg in Paris in early March.
Manager Thomas Tuchel expressed his concern after the game, also questioning why the referee hadn’t offered Neymar more protection before he was injured.
“Neymar is worried, because it’s the same foot, the right foot, in the same area,” he said after the 2-0 win. “I need to wait for the doctor to give me news about Ney. It’s always complicated. The referee did not whistle after one tackle, then a second, then a third. After that, he has twisted his foot.”
