Where are they now? The 5 best players in the world in 2020 according to Neymar
During an interview in 2020, Neymar named the five best players in the world in his opinion, but where are all of those players today?
Surprisingly, Neymar omitted Cristiano Ronaldo from his top five list in 2020, despite the Portuguese forward still scoring goals for fun at Juventus at the time.
We’ve revisited Neymar’s interview with Marca and have checked up on the five players that he considered the best in the world in 2020.
Lionel Messi
Given the close bond they share with one another, it was no surprise that Neymar named Messi as one of the top five players in the world.
“Honestly, it’s difficult, very difficult for me to talk about Messi, because it was very special for me at Barcelona, I say this to everybody,” Neymar told Rede Globo’s Esporte Espetacular in a separate interview in February 2019.
“At the moment when I needed the most support, the best player in the world arrived and gave me a hand. He said: ‘Come here, I’m here to help you.'”
During their time together at Barcelona and PSG, Messi assisted Neymar on 27 occasions and the Brazilian returned the favour on plenty of occasions too.
Currently playing in MLS for Inter Miami, there have been rumours that Neymar could reunite with Messi in 2025 as his contract with Al-Hilal is set to come to an end. Watch this space.
Luis Suarez
While Suarez was no longer at the peak of his powers in 2020, Neymar still regarded his former teammate as one of the best players in the world.
Following an under-par final season at Barcelona, Suarez rediscovered his spark in 2020-21 and fired Atletico Madrid to the title, scoring 21 goals.
Even at the ripe old age of 37, Suarez is still scoring goals for fun alongside Messi with Inter Miami. In 2024, the Uruguayan managed 25 goals in 37 appearances which is decent going.
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Kylian Mbappe
While Neymar’s relationship with Mbappe seemed to sour towards their final few years together in Paris, the pair were still on good terms in 2020.
They made it all the way to the Champions League final in 2020, but just fell short against Bayern Munich at the final hurdle.
“For me, right now, he is already a phenomenon,” Neymar said to DAZN when discussing Mbappe in 2019.
“He can have a great career and become even better than he already is. I have no doubt about it that he will become one of the biggest names in world football.”
Since that point, the Frenchman has added to his legacy and is now looking to reach a new level with Real Madrid.
After enduring a bumpy first few months in Spain, Mbappe seems to be finding his feet in Madrid having scored five goals in his last eight matches.
Paul Pogba
Neymar has often spoken fondly of Pogba and rumours from 2018 even claimed that the Brazilian tried to persuade the Frenchman to join him at PSG.
That move never ended up materialising, but Neymar has continued to hold Pogba in high regard, despite the struggles he’s had in recent years.
Like Neymar, Pogba has barely kicked a ball over the last two years. The Frenchman was handed an 18-month ban from football last year after he was found guilty of doping charges.
The 31-year-old is currently without a club and is ineligible to play for the time being because of his doping ban.
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Eden Hazard
“I would like to play with Hazard. He has a style similar to mine,” Neymar told Fox Sports in 2019.
“I think I could give it a try. We would cause havoc together.”
Unfortunately, we never got to see Neymar and Hazard on the same team as the Belgian struggled to maintain his level after moving to Real Madrid.
Following a sup-par four-year spell in Spain, Hazard announced his retirement in October 2023 at the age of 32.