The 31-year-old former Barcelona striker recently moved from Paris Saint-Germain to Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal.
Brazil’s forward Neymar celebrates after scoring against Bolivia. Neymar became Brazil’s all-time top scorer on Friday surpassing Pele’s record. Picture: CARL DE SOUZA / AFP
But he looked distraught after his soft spot-kick was easily saved by Bolivia keeper Guillermo Viscarra to keep the scores goalless. Then came Neymar’s moment to enter the history books as he pounced on a loose ball inside the box and tucked away his 78th goal in his 125th game for his country – raising his hands and his gaze to the skies.
Pele, who died in December aged 82, scored 77 goals for Brazil in 92 appearances between 1957 and 1971. Argentine Bielsa, who had previously coached Chile between 2007 and 2011, opted for a youthful line-up without veteran strikers Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez. De la Cruz broke down the left before switching to Valverde, who made space before burying a shot into the far bottom corner.
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