Neymar and Robinho Jr. bury the hatchet after training clash
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Reading Time: 3min | Wed. 06.05.26. | 15:50
Tempers flare at Santos training session, but both sides insist the situation was exaggerated and now resolved
A modest 1-1 draw against Deportivo Recoleta may not have been ideal for Santos, but the real headline came after the final whistle. Neymar and Robinho Jr's goal celebration, shared in an embrace, sent a clear message: the recent training ground incident is now behind them.
Just days earlier, Brazilian media had reported tension inside Santos' training sessions, where Neymar allegedly reacted angrily during an exchange with the 18-year-old Robinho Jr after a dribble. The situation escalated into Neymar striking the youngster, an incident the player later confirmed and reported to the club.
The episode also drew attention due to the reaction of Robinho Jr's father, former Brazil international Robinho, currently serving a nine-year prison sentence in Brazil following a rape conviction in Milan. He reportedly demanded a public apology from Neymar, which was eventually delivered.
Robinho Jr, however, moved quickly to defuse the situation and confirmed he had accepted the apology.
"I withdrew the complaint and accepted his apology. It's normal. He's human, like all of us. We all make mistakes, and I've made plenty too," the 18-year-old said.
He also admitted the situation was emotionally difficult given Neymar's influence on his upbringing.
"He was my idol growing up. He once gave me a gift when I was eight and I still have it today. But things were blown out of proportion. He acted like a man and admitted his mistake, and I also acted like a man by speaking to him. Everything is fine now."
Robinho Jr added that he may have overreacted by escalating the issue through the club and representatives.
"I could have thought about it twice. It shouldn't have gone to the media like this. The attention has been bad for both of us."
Neymar also took responsibility, while downplaying the incident as something that is part of football life.
"These things happen in football. My reaction was a bit too much, but I apologised immediately. It should have stayed between us," he said.
"We spoke in the dressing room, we understood each other. I have a special affection for him. These things happen even between friends or family. It just shouldn't have become public."
The Brazilian star even joked that the situation only escalated because of his name.
"If you want me to apologise to the media, there it is. I already apologised to him and his family. I lost my temper, yes. But these things happen. My mistake was bigger, but we resolved it."
He also stressed that internal conflicts are not unusual in football.
"Fights, arguments, even clashes happen in every dressing room. It's not normal, but it's part of the game. The important thing is how you deal with it afterwards."
Despite the controversy, Neymar insisted the issue had been settled internally after meetings with Robinho Jr and the squad, with both players apologising in front of the team.
In the end, what could have become a major dressing-room crisis has been reduced to a quickly resolved misunderstanding, and a reminder that in football, emotions often run just as high off the pitch as on it.