Samuel Eto'o Comments on Neymar's Ability to Become Best Player in the World

Former Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o has no doubt Neymar will become the best player in the world once team-mate Lionel Messi and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo start to decline.

Speaking to ESPN Brasil (h/t Omnisport for Yahoo Sports), the Antalyaspor forward, who also acts as the club's interim manager, said Neymar still has his work cut out for him, but he doesn't doubt he'll be the world's best one day:

"

Neymar has a lot of potential. After the era of Messi and Cristiano, surely he will be number one.

But he has to remember that it depends on him a lot. He must remember that he hast the talent and needs to train, train and train, because others do not have his talent.

Neymar is only 23-years-old, I am 10 years older than him, but he is a leader in Brazil.

I think, with all he has experienced, the pressure, he may be able to give advice to a 35-year-old who plays with him.

"

The 23-year-old established himself as one of the world's top forwards last season, guiding Barcelona to the UEFA Champions League title with an incredible 10 goals in that competition, per WhoScored.com.

He also played a vital role in La Liga and the Copa del Rey, playing alongside Messi and Luis Suarez to give the team arguably the best attacking trio on the planet.

Incredibly, he's been even more impressive in 2015-16. Messi missed some time with an injury early in the campaign, and Neymar stepped up in a big way, taking the Blaugrana on his shoulders and leading them to the top of the Liga standings.

Along the way, he scored some outrageous goals, including this one:

A well-deserved nomination for the Ballon d'Or was the logical result, and while Neymar is unlikely to win this year's award―Messi should be the favourite after he nearly guided Argentina to the Copa America title―it's another tremendous accomplishment the Brazil international can add to his impressive list.

While there's plenty of young, impressive talent in football right now, the likes of Paul Pogba and James Rodriguez lack the incredible amount of experience Neymar already has, which gives the latter a massive advantage.

He has also already shown he can lead a top team such as Barcelona―the others have so far played alongside top talent instead of taking the lead themselves.

Neymar certainly looks like the most likely candidate to take up the mantle of the world's best once Messi and Ronaldo start to slow down if he continues his development and doesn't rest on his laurels. He has already won every possible trophy with Barcelona―international glory should be the next step.  

Follow @ReverschPass