Neymar Earns Tite Praise As He Closes In On Pele Record
Neymar earned special praise from Brazil manager Tite after the Paris Saint Germain superstar inspired the Selecao to an opening day win over Venezuela in the 2021 Copa America on Sunday.
Neymar was the catalyst for Brazil’s win as he played a part in two goals and scored a penalty to help the host nation record a 3-0 victory.
The 29-year-old took his goal tally for the Brazil national team to 67 goals in 106 caps, leaving him just 10 goals shy of the all-time record held by Pele.
"When Neymar is well physically and well in his head, good things happen," Tite told reporters after the former Barcelona forward created seven chances against Venezuela – the most by any Brazil player in the Copa America since his international bow in 2010.
"When you have a player with the technical quality that he has, you gain in assist ability, with the left foot or with the right foot, and he becomes an unpredictable player.
"When you stop him in a more advanced position on the field of play it is better for him, because the opponents are afraid of making him an infraction in a dangerous place on the field, so we structure the team so that he receives fewer balls, but to do it in a more efficient way for the creation of the game.
"It would be an injustice to compare players from different eras, because the players of my generation were extraordinary, Neymar is also extraordinary, and a while ago Ronaldo and Romario were also extraordinary.
"There are different stages and moments, so you have to be very careful not to compare them."
