Brazil need Neymar but he needs to improve his off field behaviour, claims Rafael

Brazil need Neymar but he needs to improve his off field behaviour, claims Rafael

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Former Manchester United and Brazil star Rafael has admitted that while Brazil need Neymar to do well, the PSG superstar has to do a lot of work on his behaviour off the field. The former Barcelona man is considered to be amongst the best in the world but his attitude has caused problems.

The Brazilian has struggled to establish himself as a superstar ever since he left for PSG with Kylian Mbappe outdoing whatever Neymar has managed to produce in Paris. That combined with the myriad of problems the forward has faced including with injuries and various off the field issues has caused his value to drop and his stock in the football world has plummeted.

Nothing proved that as much as the 2018 World Cup and while Neymar was supposed to lead Brazil to glory, both him and his national side struggled to establish themselves. That has caused serious problems and formerĀ BrazilĀ star Rafael has admitted that Brazilā€™s superstar needs to change a lot of things off the field. The former Manchester United star also added that Neymar is not the leader that Brazil needs but he needs to concentrate on football only and not off-field issues.

"We need Neymar, that's for sure. We need him a lot. He needs to improve a lot of things outside the pitch. It's important for a footballer. He needs to improve a lot outside the pitch to come inside the pitch and do his best. I hope he can do that and if he does we have a big chance to win. Neymar is not a leader. I don't think he's a leader. It's not him. He can do the things he does because if he is good, if he's focused and concentrated, he is the best player in the world," Rafael told ESPN

The move to PSG shocked many but while Neymar has continued playing at what many believe is the highest level, his antics more often than not are what make the headlines. Combine that with his off field issues, his various injury problems and the fact that Kylian Mbappe is slowly taking over in Paris, it has seen Rafael admit that something needs to change. The Olympique Lyon defender also added that Neymar needs some tough love to try and get the best out his talent.

"Football has to the first option of your life. He has so many things around him. He thinks in his mind 'I don't need to do that' to play well but you need to. There are a lot of things you need to do. If he does that and someone can put this in his mind -- I know him and I've played with him -- I know he's hard guy to listen to orders. It's not good with him.

"I say the truth but sometimes people don't want to listen to the truth. They want you to say 'you are good, you are magic' they want you to say all the good stuff but life is not like that. I think he needs to listen more and if he does that it will be hard to stop Brazil," Rafael added.

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