Neymar will 'never equal' Pele, former Brazil coach Scolari says

Neymar will never live up to Pele, Brazil's former head coach Luis Felipe Scolari said on Friday.

Speaking in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Mundo, Scolari said: "In Brazil we know who is Neymar and who is Pele.

"We know that there is only one Pele and there will never be another.

"A player can be very good, spectacular even, but they will never be like Pele because he has no heir. Nobody will ever equal him."

Pele was only 17 when he won his first World Cup in Sweden in 1958. Neymar is 26 and so far has only bad memories of World Cups.

He had been ruled out by injury four years ago when Brazil slumped to a 7-1 defeat against Germany in Belo Horizonte with Scolari in charge.

Scolari, 69, also appeared to suggest that Neymar had slowed his development by leaving Barcelona.

Asked by El Mundo if Neymar was now as good as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Scolari said: "At Barcelona he evolved a lot and he almost reached their level.

"But it is not something that happens from one day to the next. He is on the right road but he still needs time. Perhaps in one year or two he will be at their level."