SAO PAULO: In his first press conference as a Brazil player in more than 240 days, striker Neymar was not shy on Monday: he believes he is in the top moment of his career and plays for the best national team in the world.

The 25-year-old star also admitted he had to mature after a series of controversies on and off the pitch and promised Brazil would be one of the favourites in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

“There was never a dependency on Neymar. This is Brazil. If focused, our team is the best,” he told reporters before the South American zone leader’s World Cup qualifying match against seventh-place Paraguay on Tuesday.

“We know this, we are humble enough to respect our adversaries, we have to play. Some­times one part or the other didn’t fit. But coach Tite arrived and made adjustments. We are playing football. The players are not so different it is the way of playing. Now everyone turns up.”

But Neymar also accepted he had to change to get to the current level of play.

“We only learn when we get hurt or do something wro­ng. I already argued unnecessarily. I got yellow and red cards, harmed my­self, harmed my team-mates. But time makes us more mature. Nowadays I only think about playing football, I am better in every aspect,” Neymar said in a press conference, alongside Tite.

“Everyone needs time to get their heads straight so things calm down. I had my moment of being a little more silent, but now I am speaking again.”

Although some already put him as future best player in the world, including big names like former Italian defender Alessandro Costacurta, Neymar rejected comparisons with multiple Ballon D’Or winners Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, his team-mate at Barcelona.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2017