Alves: ‘I’ve been begging Neymar to join Barcelona for years’
Neymar
Age: 20
Club: Santos
Futebol Finance value:: €30m
Already a key part of Brazil's international future, Neymar is world
football's most exciting young talent. The Santos forward is known for his
exceptional dribbling at speed and cool finishing which has drawn
comparisons with Lionel Messi and Pelé. He is also the current holder of the
Fifa Puskas Award for his sensational individual goal against Flamengo last
year.
BARCELONA defender Dani Alves has told Brazil team-mate Neymar to join him at the Camp Nou.
The 21-year-old Neymar has been strongly linked with Barca as Europe's leading clubs continue to track the Santos forward, whose contract in his homeland is ticking down with a move to Europe expected sooner rather than later.
Some reports even suggest the deal is done, but that has been denied and so Alves has continued his lobbying campaign.
"I've been at it for ages," he said in an interview. "When the rumours of him making a move to Europe started I told him he should come to Barcelona."
While Neymar would appear to have his pick of clubs, Alves believes Barcelona are a special case.
"It's more than a club," he added. "The motto says it all: they look after you, they pamper you and they always treat you and your family well. Look, it's got values that virtually no other club has, and that's what makes it unique.
"Everyone says you can't compete with Barcelona, but if you go to the club, you'll see that they work from the bottom up and that's why we've got all these great players. If you look at the signings they make, they just buy what they need.
"The rest of the players are all from the youth set-up. They made a commitment to it and the results are there."
