Neymar Snubs Benzema & Mbappe, Declares Vinicius Jr As the Best Player in the World

• Neymar has selected his Brazil teammate Vinicius Junior as the best player in the world ahead of PSG colleague Mbappe and Ballon d'Or hopeful Karim Benzema
• Vinicius crowned a hugely successful season with a match-winner in the finals of the Champions League
• The Real Madrid winger was named UEFA Young Player of the Season for the 2021/22 campaign

Paris Saint-Germain attacker Neymar has picked his Brazilian compatriot Vinicius Junior as the best player in the world.

Neymar heaped praise on the Real Madrid winger following his goal scoring heroics in last Saturday's UEFA Champions League finals against Liverpool.

Vinicius Junior's solitary strike was more than enough to earn Real Madrid their 14th Champions League crown at the expense of a highly-fancied Liverpool.

Following his feat in the finals and his overall performance throughout the season under review, Vinicius was voted as the 2021-22 UEFA Best Young Player.

But assessing the performance of the 20-year-old forward, Neymar went a notch higher to declare Vinicius as the best player in the world ahead of Ballon d'Or favourite Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe.

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"Mbappe had a great season, Benzema too. But from what I've seen, Vinicius Junior is the best player in the world," Neymar said in an interview with TNT Sports Brazil as quoted by CBS Sports.

Vinicius Jr named UEFA Young Player of the Season

Meanwhile, Vinicius Junior has been named the UEFA Young Player of the Season for the 2021/22 campaign, according to UEFA's Technical Observer panel.

The Real Madrid winger scored four goals in the Champions League, including the match-winner in the final against Liverpool.

The 20-year-old also registered seven assists in his 13 appearances.

Vinicius set to be rewarded with a bumper new deal

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that Real Madrid is set to reward Vinicius Junior with a hefty contract after his Champions League heroics. Vinicius scored the winning goal of the final against Liverpool and club President Florentino Perez is ready to give him a bumper contract.

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Vinicius' current deal is set to run until 2024 with an option of a further year, but the club wants to secure his long-term future at Santiago Bernabeu.

He joined the club in 2018 from the Brazilian side Flamengo. He has starred this season alongside Karim Benzema as the Spanish giants won the La Liga and the Champions League.