Neymar found the net once again as Brazil eased past Peru to make it two wins out of two at the 2021 CONMEBOL Copa America.
The hosts led early on when Juventus’ Alex Sandro fired in from six yards in the 12th minute before Neymar scored to find himself now within nine goals of Pele’s all-time scoring record at the 2021 Copa America.
Brazil scored three goals after half-time as Neymar notched his 68th goal for his country. Pele said he was “rooting” for the Paris Saint-Germain forward to break his record.
Substitutes Everton Ribeiro and Richarlison added late goals as Brazil ran away with a comfortable 4-0 victory to go top of Group B and maintain their perfect start to the Copa America as defending champions.
Brazil manager Tite has now seen his side score seven goals without reply following their opening 3-0 win over Venezuela in their first game.
Neymar not focused on numbers, just proud to play for his country
“These numbers are nothing compared to the happiness that I get from representing my country and my family,” Neymar said.
“It’s obviously a great honour for me to be part of the Brazil team’s history. To be completely honest, my dream was always to play for Brazil, to wear this shirt. I never imagined I would reach these numbers.”
Pele later wrote on Instagram: “Today, he took another step towards my goalscoring record for the national team.
“And I’m rooting for him to get there, with the same joy I’ve had since I saw him play for the first time.”
Brazil face Colombia next on 23 June before completing their Group B fixtures against Ecuador.
Four teams from each of the five-team groups will progress to the quarter-final stage.
