The one man is gone. Now we shall see if the team departs the World Cup, too.
Collective sports have few more damning descriptions than "one-man team". Ten footballers are deemed irrelevant; the result depends on the maestro among them.
This World Cup has been conducted to a backdrop of debate if the South American superpowers were little more than one-man teams, if Argentina and Brazil were being dragged forwards by Lionel Messi and Neymar, respectively.
One Barcelona talent remains but the other is hurt. So Brazil, the world's greatest footballing nation, the country that invariably produces enviably gifted flair players, look suddenly bereft.
"Neymar, rest assured that our group loves you and give life to win this title for you," said striker Fred in a rather florid tribute.
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Neymar, in a video released by the Brazilian Football Federation, said: "I'm certain my teammates will do everything so my dream, which is to be a champion, comes true."
Yet they have few obvious World Cup winners in their midfield and forward ranks. The alternative fantasistas are ageing and excluded from the squad. There is no Robinho, no Ronaldinho, no Kaka. Alexandre Pato, once the wonder boy of the Brazilian game, did not make the squad either. Neither did Lucas Moura, his counterpart.
None of which would be as important if the men Luiz Felipe Scolari selected had delivered. Now attention switches from the sidelined Neymar to his sidekicks, to Fred, Hulk and Oscar. If they are the three underachievers, Fred is the failure in chief.
His World Cup has encompassed a dive that undeservedly drew a penalty against Croatia, a goal against a dreadful Cameroon side and little else.
It has been an exercise in anonymity from the top scorer in last year's Confederations Cup. He has drawn comparisons with the undistinguished Serginho, the blunt spearhead of the hugely gifted 1982 side.
Occasionally the country of Ronaldo and Romario find themselves short of strikers. They normally compensate with class in deeper positions.
Not now. Scolari summed up Neymar's importance by branding him "our benchmark". Others have not reached the standards he set.
Oscar began brightly but his encouraging scoring display against Croatia was deceptive. Since then, he has amassed impressive tackling statistics but offered rather less incision.
Then there is Hulk, who was culpable for Chile's goal and missed a penalty in the shoot-out but at least looked livelier. It required several fine saves from Colombia's David Ospina to deny him a first strike of the tournament.
To call it encouraging is relative. Brazil have seemed to have a one-man attack.
But injury has inspired Brazil before. Pele cited the 1962 World Cup triumph, after he was ruled out. Then, Brazil had Garrincha, Vava and Mario Zagallo. Now they have Fred, Hulk and Oscar. Once again, the current side do not look a patch on their past.
Garrincha's skills were such that he was the player of the tournament and joint top scorer in 1962. It is inconceivable any of Neymar's support acts could emulate him.
More than half a century ago, Amarildo, promoted from the sidelines, proved an effective understudy for Pele. He scored three goals, which is as many as Brazil's midfielders and forwards – Neymar apart – have managed between them in five games.
While Amarildo slotted in seamlessly back then, it is harder to identify a replacement now. Oscar can move infield to play behind Fred, perhaps accommodating winger Bernard or allowing them to use the stamina of Ramires or Willian on the right.
The midfielder Hernanes is an alternative, striker Jo perhaps the least enticing option of all. Whoever steps in, he will be no Neymar.
So it is tempting to wonder if the host's hopes ended when Colombia's Juan Zuniga kneed Neymar in the back. A fractured vertebra could mean a broken dream, especially as Neymar is not the only absentee.
Captain Thiago Silva is suspended. Perhaps the eventual verdict will be that Brazil were not a one-man, but a two-man team.
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