Neymar has recently stated that Lionel Messi remains his “idol” to this day, despite calling recent reports “fake news” which stated that he wants to make a return to Barcelona. The Brazil international is currently in his second season with the renowned Paris Saint-Germain club and was targeted by Marseille fans who threw objects at the French champions after they claimed a 2-0 victory towards the end of October.
Neymar recently spoke to Players’ Tribune as a crossover interview that also included Stephen Curry, the basketball star of the Golden State Warriors. In the interview, Neymar discussed training and playing alongside Lionel Messi which was followed by praise for Christiano Ronaldo who is currently playing for Juventus.
Neymar’s Comments on Messi and Ronaldo
“I played with Lionel Messi for a while who is the greatest football players of all time for me and he is undeniably my idol when it comes to football,” he stated. “With Lionel Messi, I managed to learn every single day, whether it was playing with him or during practice, or simply just watching him play. It certainly made me stronger and it managed to increase my capacity while I’m on the field as a kept learning a great deal from him.
“As for Christiano Ronaldo, he is undoubtedly a monster on the field. Facing him is both an honour and a pleasure, but there’s no denying that we have to be much more prepared. He is also one of the best when it comes to football, so you need to be more alert and smarter while learning a great deal from him too.
“They are the two greatest football players that I can relate to, as I want to continue learning. This will help me win more matches, claim more trophies, and score a lot more goals. Therefore, I will continue to learn from them every single day.”
Neymar’s Most Difficult Moments in his Career
Neymar has recently released a comic book series of his own called “Inked” which showcases tattoos that come to life in order to fight crime as Dan Hajducky explained at New York Comic Con, and was also questioned about the most difficult moments in his career. The Brazilian football star listed his 2014 World Cup where he suffered a back injury as well as overcoming an injury that took place earlier in 2018 prior to the start of the Russian World Cup.
“The first difficult moment occurred when I injured my back,” Neymar stated. “I was on cloud nine as I played in a World Cup. It suddenly ended due to my injury. That was like the end of just about everything for me.
“I asked myself: ‘Will I ever return to the field?’ My friends and family were very important to me when it occurred and managed to help me overcome it. The second difficult moment occurred earlier in 2018 after I had my first surgery which was close to the Russian World Cup. I didn’t think I would be able to play at all.