Brazil's Unquestioned Superstar? Neymar Jr's World Cup Race Against Time
While the French winger received the prestigious football award in late September, Neymar was lying in bed for his third injury of the year - while engaging in an online poker tournament.
The veteran football star eventually placed as second place, securing around £73,800 in prize money.
It was partial comfort on a day when he had to observe the player who previously succeeded him at Barcelona lift the award he had long hoped to win.
Since returning to his boyhood club Santos in the new year, the experienced attacker has failed to live up to expectations, drawing more attention for comparable situations than for his on-field performances.
His return home after 12 seasons away was meant to be a chance for him to rediscover his best and, crucially, rekindle a passion for the game that seemed diminished after frustrating spells with Paris St-Germain and Al Hilal.
Conversely, it has been largely underwhelming for all parties involved.
This reflects the situation that the primary concern being asked right now in Brazil is whether Neymar will be part of the upcoming global tournament.
He's against the clock.
"All players have to demonstrate that they are fit. The time is passing [for him]," Brazilian legend Tostao wrote in his newspaper column.
On midweek, Brazil manager the Italian tactician disclosed his team selection for the upcoming games against Korea Republic and Japan and, yet again, Neymar was absent.
"O Principe", as he was dubbed when received at Santos in a reference to the legend Pelé, is yet to play under Ancelotti, having been missing from the Selecao for two years.
He continues to be an injury doubt for the November games, which, in the most pessimistic outlook, will leave him with just a pair of exhibition games in March 2026 to demonstrate his worth to Ancelotti before the announcement of the final list for the World Cup.
"For 15 years, Neymar was Brazil's clear standout, shouldering enormous expectations on his own," former AC Milan and Roma legend Cafu remarked.
"But nobody wins the World Cup single-handedly. Putting all our expectations on him at the present time is difficult because he finds it hard to even play multiple matches in a row."
'If Neymar is left out for technical reasons, something isn't right'
Not just has Neymar had multiple fitness issues since his return to Brazil - he's been absent for 47% of Santos' matches this campaign - but, when he was available for selection, he was a distant from the player who during his prime dared to challenge Lionel Messi and the Portuguese icon.
Of his nine goal contributions so far, half have come against teams from lower tiers than Brazil's first division - a scoring contribution against a lower-league side, followed by a three goal involvements versus Inter de Limeira, all in the regional competition.
As Santos fight relegation in the Brazilian first tier, the number 10 no longer seems to be the decisive factor he previously represented.
Nevertheless, Ancelotti has insisted that the forward has ample opportunity to show he is ready for the World Cup.
"His aim must be to be ready in summer. It isn't crucial if he's in the squad in October, November or March," the coach told L'Equipe newspaper.
Ancelotti created local debate last month by reportedly trying to protect Neymar, claiming the star had been excluded from the team over fitness concerns.
But then Neymar himself disputed it, saying he "was left out for technical reasons; it has no connection to my physical condition."
In terms of fan opinion, it definitely didn't help for Neymar.
"If the player we have pinned our dreams on to win the World Cup is excluded for performance issues, evidently there's a problem," Cafu observed.
Will Neymar be capable of emulating Ronaldo in 2002?
Polls from a leading polling institute found that the Brazilian public are divided over whether Neymar should be called up for his fourth World Cup.
With his record tally, Neymar is Brazil's historical leading marksman, but he hasn't helped his case much with his in-game attitude either.
He seems greater frustration than usual, having confronted fans repeatedly in venues - it occurred in three consecutive matches in July.
The next month, the striker was emotional after Santos suffered a 6-0 loss at home by their rivals - the heaviest defeat of his career.
When questioned by a journalist about his physical state in a game aftermath discussion, he also lost his patience: "This topic again, friend? I've responded to this countless times already."
The similar query has been directed at his parent representative Neymar Sr as well.
"Neymar's intention was to spend a limited period at Santos. To what end? To regain fitness. If Neymar was able to feature, amen," he previously explained, causing anger among supporters.
There's remaining optimism, however, that Neymar's peak years remain possible and that he will be able to revive his career the same way striker Ronaldo "Phenomenon" did in the 2002 World Cup to surmount skepticism and physical setbacks to lead Brazil to the championship trophy.
The former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan legend notes parallels.
"He's a vital player for Brazil - there's nobody like Neymar," Ronaldo said during a recent appearance with the forward in Sao Paulo.
"It's an misrepresentation from a minority who believe he's ignoring his physical recovery.
Anyone who have been in football understand completely how difficult it is to come back from an setback and recover form and self-belief. He's moving forward."
The Santos star has a few decisive months ahead to demonstrate that he's not the prince who abandoned the throne.
