Barcelona's Neymar Named Best Soccer Player in the World Among Players Under Age 25
Neymar is making history once again.
The 23-year-old Brazilian forward was named the best soccer player in the world under 25. The list was compromised by ESPNFC taking into account every aspect of the game. Spain's top league, La Liga, had six players listed, while the English Premier League had the most with 10. A total of 12 countries represented the top 25 young players in the world under 25.
Brazil, Belgium and France had the most players listed with four each.
It comes as no surprise Neymar is ranked No. 1 in this list. Neymar isn't just one of the best young players today; he is arguably the third best player in the world behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
This season Neymar (with some help from Messi) has Barcelona in second place in the La Liga standings behind only Real Madrid. Neymar may not have the scoring and shooting skills that Messi holds, but he very well could be the best dribbler in the game today. In 2011, he scored an incredible goal against Flamengo while playing for the Santos Brazilian squad. Because of that goal, Neymar won the 2011 Puskas Award for best goal of the year.
This La Liga season Neymar has 17 goals despite taking just 30 shots on goal, and he also has four assists. Neymar's 17 goals rank third in the league this season behind only Ronaldo and Messi. Performing well for Barcelona has been great, but nothing is more rewarding than playing for your nation team. Neymar played fantastic for Brazil at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which was held in Brazil. Although Neymar was injured against Colombia late in the tournament, he was fantastic at the World Cup scoring a team-high four goals.
Perhaps the greatest soccer player of all time, Pele, has even called Neymar "better" than Messi. There's probably a little bit of hometown favoritism there, but Pele knows talent. It's still a little early to give Neymar the nod over Messi, but he's well on his way.
Another great younger player who was featured was James Rodriguez. The 23-year-old Colombian had one of the most memorable World Cups ever in 2014. Rodriguez won the Golden Boot Award for scoring the most goals at the World Cup with six. Rodriguez guided Colombia into the quarterfinals for the first time in their country's history with four victories.
Rodriguez's shining moment came in the single game elimination knockout stage where he and Colombia faced Uruguay. Colombia would go on to beat Uruguay 2-0 with both goals coming from Rodriguez and eventually fell to Brazil and Neymar in the quarterfinals.
Other high-profile young players include Paul Pogba and David de Gea. Pogba currently plays for the Italian club Juventus. Pogba was named to the French National Team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and even scored a goal against Nigeria in the Round of 16. David de Gea is a great young goalkeeper who was selected to Spain's final roster for the World Cup along with Iker Casillas. De Gea currently plays for Manchester United.
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