Saudi Club Al-Hilal Says Contract with Neymar Has Been Terminated by Mutual Consent 

Football - Asian Champions League - Group B – Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar. (Reuters) 
Football - Asian Champions League - Group B – Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar. (Reuters) 
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Saudi Club Al-Hilal Says Contract with Neymar Has Been Terminated by Mutual Consent 

Football - Asian Champions League - Group B – Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar. (Reuters) 
Football - Asian Champions League - Group B – Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar. (Reuters) 

Saudi Arabia club Al-Hilal said Monday it reached an agreement with striker Neymar to terminate his contract by mutual consent.

Neither side confirmed details of the termination after the 32-year-old Brazilian, once hailed as one of the world's best players, played only seven matches for the club, with only one goal and two assists.

Despite being sidelined since October 2023 due to an ACL injury, former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar was part of the squad that won last season's Saudi league.

Their deal was due to expire after Al-Hilal's participation in this year's FIFA Club World Cup, which will be played between June 15 and July 13 in the United States.

The club said in a statement published on its social media channels that it “expresses its thanks and appreciation to Neymar for what he has provided throughout his career with Al-Hilal.”

The striker joined the Saudi club from Paris Saint-Germain in August 2023 for 90 million euros ($94 million), in one of many transactions that placed the Kingdom as one of the new big soccer markets in the world. But Neymar picked up his ACL injury, the most serious of his career, playing for Brazil only months after he joined Al-Hilal.

Neymar returned in October and had his most recent appearance for the Saudi club in November. The Brazilian said in different interviews there were doubts on whether coach Jorge Jesus would count on him for the rest of the season.

Brazilian media has reported that Neymar and his father are interested in a six-month return to his boyhood club Santos, where he achieved national fame and his first caps for Brazil before he joined Barcelona in 2013.

Brazil national team coach Dorival Júnior has said since the end of last year that Neymar is not fully recovered for international soccer either. In March, his team will play against leader Argentina in South American World Cup qualifying, and Neymar is once again unlikely to play.

Neymar, Brazil's all-time top goal scorer with 79 goals in 125 matches, has said he is focused on getting more playing time so he can best prepare for the World Cup in North America next year, in what could be his last shot at winning the tournament.



Spurs Midfielder Maddison Silences Critics with Winner Against Man United 

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - February 16, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates scoring their first goal. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - February 16, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates scoring their first goal. (Action Images via Reuters)
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Spurs Midfielder Maddison Silences Critics with Winner Against Man United 

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - February 16, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates scoring their first goal. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - February 16, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates scoring their first goal. (Action Images via Reuters)

James Maddison delivered the perfect riposte to his doubters by scoring the winning goal against Manchester United after the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder had come in for some stinging criticism in the lead-up to Sunday's Premier League match.

Making his first start since suffering a calf injury in December, Maddison tapped in a rebound from close range to give his side a 1-0 win in London, celebrating his goal with a shushing gesture.

Earlier in the week, former Manchester United captain Roy Keane had said anyone who thought Maddison's return to the side would help Spurs break into the top six was living in "cuckoo land."

"He got relegated with Leicester and he'll get relegated with Spurs," Keane said on "The Overlap" podcast.

"There was a little bit of outside noise this week," Maddison, who joined Spurs from Leicester City in 2023, told Sky Sports.

"People will have their opinions, but I wanted to do my talking on the pitch. I hope there is a certain few that enjoyed me being the match-winner today.

"Nobody is more critical of myself than me," he added.

"To be fair to the gaffer, he always talks about blocking out the outside noise, but sometimes it's difficult, you know. It's constantly in your face, social media and WhatsApp."

Despite the win Spurs remain in the bottom half of the table, sitting in 12th spot on 30 points after 25 games. They visit Ipswich Town on Saturday.