Neymar has revealed he learned everyday from Lionel Messi while at Barcelona , and described his former team-mate as his “football idol”.
The Brazilian was speaking to The Players’ Tribune alongside NBA star Steph Curry.
The world’s most expensive footballer spent four seasons playing at the Nou Camp alongside the Argentinian, winning two La Liga titles and a Champions League in that time.
While at Barcelona he also came up against five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, who he has described as a “monster”.
“Facing Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo – and I played with Messi, who is, for me, one of the greatest footballers of all time, and he is my idol in football,” said Neymar.
“With Messi, I learned every day, whether during our practice, or playing with him, or just watching him play. And that made me stronger and it increased my capacity on the field because I kept learning a lot from him.
“As for Cristiano Ronaldo , he is a monster. Facing him is a pleasure and an honor, but we have to be more prepared. He is one of the greatest in football so you get smarter, you get alert, but at the same time you learn a lot, too.
“So, they are two of the big guys that I can relate to, because I want to learn, I want more, I want to win, I want more trophies, score more goals … so I keep learning from them every day.”
