The routine was just as you will have remembered: head bowed, hands pointing to heaven before blessing himself then breaking into a sprint. It had been 98 days since Neymar had last gone through that custom before a game but here he was on the side of the pitch, bedecked in that famous, shimmering No 10 shirt of Brazil, primed for action. The fear of the World Cup taking place without one of its biggest attractions was over.
During the 14 weeks since he broke his metatarsal in Paris Saint-Germain’s 3-0 drubbing of Marseille, Neymar has barely been off Instagram. His 93.3million followers have been afforded plenty of insights to his glitzy lifestyle but little idea of how his rehabilitation has progressed.