Cafu is a legend in Brazil, winning the 2002 World Cup with Rivaldo and Ronaldo. He told t-online.de what he thought of Neymar and who would always play under him as a coach.
Brazil legend Cafu confirms Paris Saint-Germain’s top striker Neymar still has a lot of development potential – and still doesn’t see him on a par with Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. The world champion captain from 2002 said to t-online.de: “Neymar is certainly one of the best Brazilian players of the past ten years. But Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated everything in the last 15 years. He still lacks a lot.”
Cafu (l.) With t-online.de sports editor Noah Platschko at the Laureus Sports Award in Berlin. (Source: GES sports photo / Mercedes-Benz)
Neymar will be the focus of observers in particular this Wednesday. In the Prinzenpark in Paris, he meets Borussia Dortmund (9 p.m. Live ticker at t-online.de). The Parisians had lost the first leg despite the Brazil’s equalizer in the meantime with 1: 2. So the pressure on Thomas Tuchel’s star ensemble is great.
But not only the Paris fans have high expectations of the former “talent of the century”, who switched from FC Santos to FC Barcelona in 2013. Even in his Brazilian homeland, the demands on the now 28-year-old are high. According to Cafu, he still lacks something about another Brazilian icon.
“He doesn’t have the standing that Ronaldo enjoys in Brazil,” Cafu compares Neymar’s reputation to that of Ronaldo, who shot Brazil to the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea. “Neymar is still a long way from him. Whether that will change one day is entirely up to him.”
A memorable goal: Ronaldo scored 1-0 against Germany in the 2002 World Cup final. (Source: Sven Simon / imago images)
Cafu about Coutinho: “I would always play with me”
Cafu also commented on Bayern midfielder Philippe Coutinho, who recently showed increasing form. “He is a sensational player who has acclimatized well in Munich. If I were a coach, he would always play with me,” Cafu said.
Incidentally, Cafu himself had never received an offer from the Bundesliga during his active career, as he revealed t-online.de. “Nobody ever asked me. I was in Rome and Milan for a few years, but there was never an inquiry from Germany. I don’t know why.”
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