Neymar to Miss Brazil's World Cup Opener Against Morocco

Brazil will be without star forward Neymar for their opening World Cup group-stage match against Morocco due to a calf injury, head coach Carlo Ancelotti confirmed on Friday.

"He is working hard to recover as quickly as possible," Ancelotti said. "We hope he can return to full training next week."

Brazil face a difficult test in their tournament opener against 2022 World Cup semifinalists Morocco. The clash is the only group-stage fixture featuring two teams currently ranked in FIFA's top 10, with Brazil sitting sixth and Morocco eighth.

Neymar has not played since featuring for Santos in a Brazilian league match on May 17 and missed all of Brazil's pre-World Cup preparations because of the injury. The Brazilian Football Confederation recently reported that the 34-year-old is making steady progress in his recovery.

Should Neymar feature later in the tournament, he would become only the ninth Brazilian player to appear in four World Cups, joining an elite group that includes Pele and Ronaldo. Across 13 World Cup appearances, Neymar has scored eight goals and provided four assists, helping Brazil achieve one fourth-place finish and two quarterfinal runs.

This is also the third World Cup in which Neymar has been sidelined for at least one match through injury.

"He inspires me," teammate Vinicius Junior said. "I wish him a speedy recovery and can't wait to see him back on the field."

Brazil will also be aiming to continue their strong record against African opposition at the World Cup on Saturday. The five-time champions have won seven of their previous eight World Cup matches against African teams, with their only defeat coming against Cameroon in 2022.