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Brazilian star Neymar returned to the pitch in style, delivering two assists as Santos cruised to a 3-0 victory over Vasco da Gama in the Brazilian league.
Playing at Vasco’s Sao Januario stadium, Santos secured a convincing win through goals from Gabigol, Willian Arao and Luan Peres, with Neymar directly involved in the final two goals.
The first half ended goalless, but Santos broke the deadlock shortly after the restart when Gabigol put the visitors ahead.
Vasco struggled to recover after conceding, and Santos quickly capitalised on the hosts’ disarray. Neymar delivered a dangerous cross into the box, and an attempted clearance by Leo Jardim deflected off Willian Arao and ended up in the net to double Santos’ lead.
Neymar came close to scoring himself moments later when his well-struck free-kick was kept out by the goalkeeper. However, Luan Peres reacted quickest to the rebound and fired the ball home to make it 3-0.
The victory underlined Neymar’s continued influence for Santos, with the forward once again showing his creativity and playmaking ability after returning to action.
Santos will now turn their attention to the Copa Sudamericana knockout stage. They travel to Ecuador on Thursday to face Macara in the second leg.
Santos hold a 2-1 advantage from the first leg and will look to maintain their form and secure their progress to the next round.