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What’s the story?
Barcelona legend Rivaldo has claimed that Neymar Jr. is not among the top three football players on the planet at the moment.
While ranking Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the top two in the respective order, Rivaldo was reluctant in picking his Brazilian compatriot as the third best player in the world.
In case you didn’t know...
Neymar's future still remains uncertain as the Parisian giants are trying to recoup most of the €222 million they paid for Neymar back in 2017.
After a tug of war between the two Spanish giants over the last two months, Barcelona have emerged as the favorites to land the superstar after several reports in Spanish media claiming the flamboyant Brazilian has his heart set on a return to the Camp Nou.
On Tuesday, it was claimed that Barcelona have submitted an official bid of €170 million with the possibility of including a player or two as makeweight for the deal.
The heart of the matter
Speaking on Cadena SER’s El Larguero programme, the former Barcelona attacker has ranked Messi as the best player in the world, while he chose Ronaldo as the second best. However, Rivaldo has expressed his unwillingness to give Neymar the status of the third best player in the world. He said,
"At the moment, the best player is Messi. Cristiano Ronaldo would be second and third... that's something I haven't thought about. Neymar wouldn't be third. For everything that happened last season. If he does return to Spanish football, maybe next season he might be among the top three players in the world - or even be the best".
The Brazilian even went on and claimed that Neymar made a mistake by leaving Barcelona to join PSG two years ago:
"I think he made a mistake leaving in the first place but I'd like to see him come back. With Neymar, the team will be stronger in the Champions League. We know he made a mistake but as soon as he's back and scoring goals it will all be forgotten about".
When asked about whether Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar Jr. and Antoine Griezmann all can coexist at Barcelona, Rivaldo was optimistic in his reply:
"You can always find space for good players. Every club wants to have the best players. It would be good for football and absolutely amazing for Barcelona."
What’s next?
With the Spanish transfer window nearing to it's end, it still remains to be seen where Neymar will ply his trade this season.
