Wayne Rooney's recent remarks about Neymar have created an uproar in the world of football. The personal opinion of Rooney came just a few days after Neymar was excluded from the Brazil national team for the upcoming international friendly games ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Wayne Rooney is one of the greatest players to grace the game of football and an all-time record goal scorer of Manchester United. Besides that, he had won the Premier League Player of the Season, Golden Boy Award, the England Player of the Year, and many more accolades throughout his career.

Neymar, who is considered one of the best players of this generation, received a brutal reality check from Wayne Rooney. The former England captain revealed that Neymar was never a“top, top” player in his eyes.

Rooney said on The Overlap podcast, "I like Neymar, but I've never seen him as a top, top player. Like Messi, Ronaldo, that kind of category. He was good at Barcelona, but he was still overshadowed by Messi."

Following Wayne Rooney’s brutal remarks on Neymar, fans all over the world quickly started to compare the two players. Besides that, these comments came at a time when Neymar is struggling to break into the national team ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

Amid Wayne Rooney's criticism, Neymar dreams of participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup

In 128 matches, Neymar has scored 79 goals and provided 59 assists. Besides that, the 34-year-old led Brazil to its first-ever Olympic gold medal in 2016. Moreover, he has represented Brazil in three FIFA World Cup tournaments between 2014 and 2022. He has scored eight goals and chipped in with three assists in 13 matches at the World Cup.

Neymar is currently playing in the Brasileiro Serie A at Santos. He has scored three goals and provided two assists in five matches this season in all competitions. Despite his recent performances, Neymar was not included in the upcoming international matches for Brazil by manager Carlo Ancelotti.

Following his exclusion, Neymar said: "Obviously I'm upset and sad not to have been selected."

"But my focus remains, day after day, training after training, match after match. We will reach our goal, there's still the final squad.”

Carlo Ancelotti is yet to pick Neymar for the Brazil national team. However, Neymar is still confident that he will be able to impress Ancelotti and be a part of the national team squad at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Also read: Neymar snubbed from Brazil's squad for friendlies before FIFA World Cup 2026