Brazil superstar Neymar was left shattered on Sunday as he endured the worst defeat of his professional club career as Santos crashed to a 0-6 drubbing at the hands of Vasco da Gama on Sunday in a Brazilian Serie A fixture vital to the relegation battle of both sides.
After five of the six goals were blasted in during the second half, a shell-shocked Neymar was left in tears at full-time. The win trimmed the 16th-placed Vasco da Gama’s trail behind Santos to two points at 19, with the clubs just sitting ahead of the relegation zone comprising four teams.
After an early goal from Lucas Piton, former Liverpool and Barcelona forward Coutinho scored twice for Vasco in the second half. Goals from David Correa De Fonseca, Rayan, and Danilo Neves capped off the sensational scoreline.
Fans protest, coach fired
Neymar was consoled by one of the support staff and Vasco da Gama head coach Fernando Diniz as he trudged back to the dressing room. Santos expressed their displeasure of the result, protesting by turning their backs to the pitch.
Neymar chorando nos braços do Diniz. pic.twitter.com/m7gQa4Yt0b
— Dirso Ament (@dirsoament) August 17, 2025
“I’m ashamed. I’m totally disappointed with our performance. The fans have every right to protest, obviously without using violence … But if they want to curse and insult, they’re in their right,” said Neymar, who signed a new contract with his boyhood club in June.
“It’s a feeling of extreme shame. I’ve never experienced this in my life. Unfortunately, it happened. The tears were from anger, from everything. Unfortunately, I can’t help in every way. Anyway, it was total s—, that’s the reality.”
Rubbing salt onto the wounds, Neymar also picked up his third yellow card of the season, marking him out of the next fixture against Bahia.
The ignominious defeat also resulted in the immediate sacking of head coach Cléber Xavier. “wish him well in his future career,” they said in a statement.
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Neymar’s worst defeats
Since turning pro in 2009, Neymar’s worst defeats have been two 4-0 results. The first came in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup final when his Santos side lost to Barcelona, whom he would later represent. His second 4-0 loss happened more than five years later while at Barcelona, in a Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain.
Neymar was notably absent from the Brazil’s infamous 7-1 defeat to Germany in the 2014 FIFA World Cup semi-final at home after falling to an injury in the quarter-finals against Colombia.
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