Neymar sits on the bench for final Brazil match

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Neymar will watch Brazil’s final World Cup match from the bench.

Despite nursing a back injury from the quarterfinals that ruled him out of the tournament, the star striker joined his teammates on the pitch during their warm-up before the third-place match against the Netherlands on Saturday.

Walking slowly, Neymar went straight to the bench and did not participate in the team’s activities at the National Stadium in Brasilia.

Neymar fractured a vertebra after being kneed in the back late in the match against Colombia.

He was not at the stadium when Brazil lost 7-1 to Germany in the semifinals on Tuesday. He joined the squad at its training camp outside Rio de Janeiro on Thursday.

Neymar scored four goals and had been Brazil’s best player until getting hurt.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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