Brazilian wonder celebrates 23rd birthday…
Barcelona and Brazil superstar Neymar celebrates his 23rd birthday today – the same day as La Liga rival Cristiano Ronaldo – and we give you 10 amazing facts on another footballing phenomenon born on this illustrious day.
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1. While the Brazilian is commonly known simply as Neymar – his full-name is Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior – inherited from his father whom was also a footballer.
2. The first club to express interest in Neymar was an English club – and one which may surprise a few – West Ham United. The Hammers put in a £12m bid in 2010 as the Brazilian began to attract attention, yet the offer was rejected without hesitation. It was this bid that drew Neymar to the world stage, with Chelsea next to take interest, sparking a flurry of interest from the giants of Europe.
3. Before joining Barcelona in May 2013, the only team that Neymar had played for was Brazilian club Santos, in which the forward was offered a contract by in 2003, becoming part of their youth academy.
4. Neymar was overlooked for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa – even with Brazil legends Pele and Romario pushing for him to be included in the squad. 14,000 fans also signed a petition for the wonderkid to travel, yet the pleas were ignored as the forward wasn’t on the stand-by list, either.
5. Barcelona’s rivals Real Madrid looked certain to sign the Brazilian when he was 14-years-old, with Neymar jetting to Spain and passing all the required tests, yet Santos blocked the move as they paid a sizeable price to keep their star in Brazil.
6. Neymar is the only Brazilian athlete to have graced the front-cover of Time magazine – and the only other Brazilians to have received such honour from the world-renown magazine have been political figureheads. An incredible achievement.
7. Neymar became a father at the age of 19, to son Davvi Luca, and the mother’s identity has been protected.
8. Neymar is a marketing dream – in 2012 and 2013, he was named, by SportsPro, as the most marketable athlete in the world – beating such global sporting phenomenon’s as Usain Bolt and Lionel Messi.
9. The 23-year-old scored his 100th professional goal on his 20th birthday and rounded off the year with 43 goals – a career-best.
10. Given the publicity surrounding Neymar’s arrival at Barcelona, the winger is only the Spanish giants ninth most expensive signing at €57m – proving just how much the Catalan’s spend on their prized assets.