Neymar will not play in Brazil's World Cup match against Haiti due to a right calf injury, the Brazilian Football Confederation announced Thursday.
## What happened to Neymar?
The 34-year-old forward has been out for a month due to the injury and will remain in New Jersey to continue his recovery.
Neymar trained with Brazil this week in Morristown, N.J., but will not travel with the team to Philadelphia.
## Why is Neymar's absence significant?
As Brazil's all-time leading scorer with 79 goals over 128 appearances, Neymar's absence is a significant blow to the team's chances.
The Brazilians, ranked No. 5 in the FIFA world rankings, earned a 1-1 draw with No. 6 Morocco in their Group C opener on June 18.
## What comes next for Brazil?
Brazil will take on Haiti at 8:30 p.m. EDT Thursday at Philadelphia Stadium, and then face No. 37 Scotland in their group stage finale on June 22.
Neymar has played in three previous World Cups, scoring eight times over his previous 13 World Cup appearances.
The winner of Group C will take on the second-place team from Group F in the Round of 32, with Sweden currently leading Group F.
And Brazil's chances of advancing to the knockout stages will depend on their performance in the remaining group stage matches.
But for now, the focus is on Neymar's recovery, with the Brazilian Football Confederation confirming that he will remain in New Jersey to optimize the final phase of his recovery process.
So the Brazilian team will have to rely on other players to step up and fill the void left by Neymar's absence.
Neymar's injury has been a setback for the team, but they are still confident of advancing to the knockout stages.
The Brazilian Football Confederation has confirmed that Neymar will not travel with the team to Philadelphia, and will instead remain in New Jersey to continue his recovery.