Tokyo: Barcelona striker Neymar says he is almost back to full fitness after the serious back injury he suffered at the World Cup.
The 22-year-old Neymar made a promotional trip to Tokyo where he will film a commercial for a Japanese mattress company. About 700 fans greeted him at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on Thursday.
“It’s all good, my back is improving, it’s almost 100 per cent,” Neymar said at a press conference. “I’m looking forward to joining my teammates and helping them win the title.”
Neymar’s first World Cup ended in disappointment when he was carried off the field on a stretcher with a fractured vertebra during Brazil’s quarter-final win over Colombia.
Before his injury, Neymar scored four goals in his five games and was considered one of the stand-out players of the tournament. Half of Brazil’s goals until then were scored by him.
Barcelona’s season starts on August 24 and the club has said Neymar’s recovery from injury was progressing “very well.”
“This mattress feels great, I am sure it will help me in my recovery,” Neymar said. “I had a long trip here so I’m looking forward to testing this mattress tonight.”
Neymar was on a busy schedule during his Japan trip. In addition to shooting a commercial, he made several television appearances where he fielded questions about football technique from young Japanese players.
Neymar will form part of arguably the world’s most fearsome strike-force alongside Lionel Messi and new Barca signing Luis Suarez.
“It’s always been my dream to play in Europe and win as many titles as possible. I’m not striving to be the world’s greatest player — just the best player I can be in order to help Brazil.”
Dressed in black with his cap on back-to-front and wearing a chunky gold chain, Neymar appeared on Japan’s Fuji TV, triggering bedlam in the studio as guests and audience members in replica Brazil jerseys lined up to have their shirts signed.
The Brazilian pin-up, still wearing a protective corset for his injury, looked sheepish when asked if he liked Japanese women, replying diplomatically: “Japanese ladies are very pretty. But I’m Brazilian so I think I prefer Brazilian girls.”
Once he had left and order had been restored to the studio, several Neymar “lookalikes” were wheeled out — including a farmer, a roofer and a noodle chef.
Neymar carried the hopes of host nation Brazil on his shoulders at the World Cup but his involvement ended in tears as he suffered his injury in the 2-1 quarter-final win over Colombia, pictures of him being airlifted to hospital by helicopter sending the country into shock.
Without their talisman, who had scored four goals in the tournament, Brazil suffered their most humiliating defeat ever when they were pulverised 7-1 by eventual champions Germany in the semi-final.
The world’s top athletes often criss-cross the globe for lucrative endorsements in Japan. Real Madrid heart-throb Cristiano Ronaldo was there recently, while former England captain David Beckham still enjoys huge marketing power in the country.
