Striker Neymar recently created a shining moment in Santos’ shirt, and this is something that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have never done in their careers.
In Santos’ recent match, Neymar had a brilliant performance when he directly contributed to the team’s victory against Inter de Limeira in round 12 of Paulista Serie A1. The Brazilian superstar had a goal and an assist, helping Santos win 3-0.
Notably, Neymar scored a masterpiece right in front of tens of thousands of Inter de Limeira fans present at the Estadio Major Jose Levy Sobrinho Stadium. In the 27th minute, Neymar took a corner kick from the left wing, then the ball headed towards the far corner of the goal and hit the post into the net, leaving goalkeeper Santos Pereira helpless.
This is the first time Neymar has scored from a corner kick in his career, thereby surpassing his two seniors Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. During their peak years, Ronaldo and Messi scored in many different ways, but this duo has never once put their names on the scoresheet from a corner kick.
Apart from Neymar, many football legends have scored from corner kicks, notably Ronaldinho, David Beckham, Roberto Carlos, Thierry Henry, Toni Kroos, Diego Forlan and Angel Di Maria. This type of corner kick goal is also known as the “Olimpico”.
Specifically, former US player Megan Rapinoe is the only person in history, male or female, to have scored a goal directly from a corner kick at the Olympics. She first did this at the 2012 London Olympics and then repeated the achievement at Tokyo 2020. To commemorate Rapinoe’s mark, the goals from corner kicks were named “Olimpico”.
As for Neymar, the Brazilian player is gradually showing his quick integration into his hometown team. Since returning from Al Hilal in the winter transfer window, the 33-year-old player has played a total of six matches for Santos, scoring two goals and three assists, helping the team win three and draw two.
After the above victory, Santos have reached the Paulista quarter-finals and they will face Bragantino in this round.
