Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo were seen as enemies during their La Liga days at Barcelona and Real Madrid, but that hasn’t stopped the Brazilian praising the Manchester United icon.
The pair faced off seven times in La Liga, Neymar claiming four wins and sharing a draw in their El Classico bouts. He eventually made a world record £200m transfer to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.
Despite reports linking him with a possible exit, he remains in the French capital for another season and has been in incredible form, netting nine times in eight matches across all competitions. He recently sat down with DAZN to answer quick-fire questions, which required him to describe players in one word.
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When it came to Ronaldo, with whom he shares a birthday - albeit with a seven-year age gap - he said: “Genius”. He used the same superlative to describe former Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi, whom he called the ‘GOAT’ in 2020.
Neymar went on to discuss United centre-half Raphael Varane and how tough he found playing against him during his Real Madrid days. “I’ve played against Varane many times,” he said.
“He’s a very good centre-back. He’s quick and intelligent. His positioning is very good. He’s a top player. He almost never gets it wrong. That’s why he’s won so much.”
Neymar also referenced Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk, Ruben Dias of Manchester City and new Los Blancos signing Antonio Rudiger as tough opponents. Meanwhile, he named City’s Kyle Walker as the toughest full-back he’s played against one-on-one.
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