Former Super Eagles captain, Austin ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha, has said that no current African player matches the ability of Neymar, who he described as a world class player who loves to entertain like him.
Okocha stated this while speaking with FIFA.com about this year’s The Best Awards and his favourites to win the men’s award on 23rd October in London.
When asked if the ability to dazzle was enough to be crowned The Best, he replied: “Anyone aspiring to be the best or one of the best, needs more than that. You also need to be able to focus, work hard, and be consistent, as natural talent alone is not enough to elevate you to that level. If you understand that, and you have the raw talent, then you can compete at that level.
“Anyone aspiring to be the best or one of the best needs more than that. You also need to be able to focus, work hard, and be consistent, as natural talent alone is not enough to elevate you to that level. If you understand that, and you have the raw talent, then you can compete at that level.”
Okocha also said Neymar, who has inherited his No. 10 shirt at Paris Saint-Germain, resembles him as a player.
“I’d say the player whose style most resembles mine would be Neymar. That’s because I played with a sense of joy and you can see that he feels the same and really enjoys his own play. He doesn’t play for himself or just to entertain the fans – he plays for his team. He uses his quality and skill for the good of the team,” he added.
