Neymar returns to Brazilian club Santos after termination of contract in Saudi Arabia

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Neymar has agreed to return to Santos nearly 12 years after he left the Brazilian team, club president Marcelo Teixeira said Tuesday.

The Brazil striker confirmed earlier that his contract with Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal had been terminated by mutual consent. He had an injury-marred spell at Al-Hilal, where he played only seven matches and scored once.

Neymar won six titles with his boyhood club Santos, including a Copa Libertadores trophy in 2011. Santos is a beachfront city outside São Paulo.

“It is the time (to come back), Neymar. It is time for you to come back to your people. To our home, to the club in our hearts,” Teixeira said in his social media channels. “Welcome, our boy Ney! A boy of Vila (Belmiro, Santos’ stadium). Come back to be happy again with the white and black shirt. The Santos nation awaits you with open arms.”

Neymar, once hailed as one of the world’s best players, spent much of his time in Saudi Arabia on the sidelines due to an ACL injury he picked playing for Brazil in October 2023.

São Paulo media reported that the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star is expected to return to Brazil this week and reintroduce himself to Santos fans within days.

Neymar became the most expensive player in soccer history when he transferred from Barcelona to PSG for 222 million euros (then $262 million) in 2017.

Neymar’s spokeswoman, Day Franco, told The Associated Press the player had no immediate comment.

However, Neymar responded with a heart gif to a post of Kely Nascimento, one of the daughters of three-time World Cup winner Pelé, celebrating his return to Santos.

“(My father) must be taking bicycle kicks in heaven after finding out that our boy is coming back home,” Nascimento said on Instagram. Pelé died in December 2022.

A video published by Al-Hilal on Tuesday evening shows Neymar giving a farewell speech.

“Today I am very happy to be able to go, return home. To my country,” Neymar told his former teammates, without mentioning Santos. “It was a pleasure for me to play for this club. It was a short time, things were not as I expected. I could not help you on the pitch as I wanted.”

Santos was relegated to Brazil’s second division in 2023 and was promoted again in the latest season.

Neymar’s most recent match was played in November. Al-Hilal coach Jorge Jesus had repeatedly cast doubts about the striker’s form to play.

Neymar left the Saudi Arabian league after playing just seven games in 17 months following his big-money move to the oil-rich kingdom.

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

“I gave everything to play and I wish we enjoyed better times on the pitch together,” Neymar said in a message on social media. “To Saudi, thank you for giving me and my family a new home and new experiences. I now know the real Saudi and have friends for life.”

Despite Neymar’s injury, Al-Hilal still managed to win last season’s Saudi league. The Brazilian’s contract was due to expire after this year’s FIFA Club World Cup, which will be played between June 15 and July 13 in the United States.

The striker joined the Saudi club from PSG in August 2023 for 90 million euros ($94 million). His salary was reportedly one of the biggest in world soccer as well.

But Neymar picked up his ACL injury playing for Brazil only months after he joined Al-Hilal.

Neymar returned in October but said in different interviews there were doubts over whether he would stay for the rest of the season.

Santos fans have already been expecting Neymar’s return. Since last week, they have posted a video of a man with the voice of legendary three-time World Cup winner Pelé, who died in 2022 at age 82, asking Neymar to return and wear his historic No. 10 shirt.

In June, during a visit to one of his social projects in Brazil, the striker denied he was eyeing a return to the club, calling the idea "a total lie, there’s no plans. I have another year in my contract with Al-Hilal. I hope to play a great season there. ... Obviously Santos is the club in my heart, one day I do want to come back. But there’s no plan in my head.”

Earlier in January, Neymar made news for his comments about former PSG teammate Kylian Mbappé, who is now at Real Madrid.

Speaking in a podcast hosted by World Cup winner Romário, Neymar said the Frenchman became “a little jealous” after superstar Lionel Messi joined the French club in August 2021. He also added that big egos affected the performances of PSG in big matches.

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

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Brazil's Santos' Neymar, center, kicks the ball to score as Paraguay's Cerro Porteno's players Cesar Benitez, left, and Mariano Uglessich fail to block during a Copa Libertadores soccer game in Asuncion, Paraguay, Wednesday, June 1, 2011. (AP Photo/Cesar Olmedo, File)

FILE - Brazil's Neymar waves to fans during a training session in Cuiaba, Brazil, Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Andre Penner, File)

FILE - Brazil's Neymar controls the ball during a qualifying soccer match for the FIFA World Cup 2026 against Peru at National stadium in Lima, Peru, Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia, File)

FILE - Al Hilal's Neymar shoots the ball during warm up for the AFC Champions League soccer match against Iran's Nassaji at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran, Iran, Oct. 3, 2023. (AP Photo, File)

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.

Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.

“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.

"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.

Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.

Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.

Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.

At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.

Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.

Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.

After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.

“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”

Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.

Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.

His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.

“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”

Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.

FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)