Neymar is not a "team player" according to talkSPORT's Jason Cundy, who wouldn't take the Brazilian over Chelsea star Mason Mount.
Cundy, himself a Blues fan, has taken aim at the PSG star, who helped Brazil get their World Cup off to the ideal start with a 2-0 win over Serbia on Thursday night. Neymar is playing in his third tournament, but is yet to deliver glory for his country, and has been criticised for his playing style over the years.
The 29-year-old's quality has never been in doubt, ever since he burst onto the scene as a teenager. He's continued to pick up silverware at club level, first with Barcelona and now PSG, but Neymar has been accused of playing as an individual and Cundy wouldn't take him in a combined team.
He and Jamie O'Hara were discussing who from the Brazil team would make the England starting XI and Cundy claimed he would have Mount, who is by no means a global superstar, over the Brazilian because he is prepared to do his bit for the team. He said on TalkSport : "Neymar doesn't get anywhere near a team I want to support because it's him, he's not a team player.
"I'll tell you why - Neymar won't do what Mount does. Neymar won't do the dirty work. He won't do that. If you're a team player you can't get in the team. Can you imagine if Neymar was English in that [Gareth] Southgate squad? Can you imagine the disruption, what it would do, the effect it would have? He's not part of the gang."
Cundy also claimed the forward left Barcelona because he wanted to be the main man, but is now struggling to do that in Paris alongside Kylian Mbappe. He added: "Look what he did, he left Barca because he couldn't compete with Messi. He turned up at PSG, Mbappe turned up and he's not even the best player at PSG. It's about him, it's more than just the player."
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Neymar and Mount have taken on different roles with their respective clubs. The Brazilian is more of a forward whilst Mount has largely occupied midfield roles. Neymar's best goalscoring season saw him score 39 times - Mount's best effort in comparison is 14 whilst on loan at Vitesse.
Cundy went on to say: “I’ve never said he’s a bad player. I’ve never said that. What I’m saying is that I think he’s overrated in what he brings to the team. Technically, he’s obviously a wonderful footballer but there’s element to his game where people get seduced when they see the tricks and the flicks."
