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All About Neymar
Neymar da Silva Santos J�nior (; born 5 February 1992), commonly known as Neymar or Neymar Jr., is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Brazilian national team as a forward or winger.
At the age of 19, Neymar won the 2011 South American Footballer of the Year award, after coming third in 2010
He followed this up by winning it again in 2012
In 2011 Neymar received nominations for the FIFA Ballon d'Or, where he came 10th, and the FIFA Pusk�s Award for Goal of the Year, which he won
He is known for his acceleration, speed, dribbling, finishing and ability with both feet
His playing style has earned him critical acclaim, with fans, media and former players drawing comparison to former Brazil forward Pel�, who has called Neymar "an excellent player", while Ronaldinho has stated "he will be the best in the world".
Neymar joined Santos in 2003 and, after rising through the ranks, was promoted to their first team squad
He made his debut for Santos in 2009 and was voted the Best Young Player of the 2009 Campeonato Paulista
Further awards followed, with Neymar being voted best player as Santos won the 2010 Campeonato Paulista, and also being top scorer in the 2010 Copa do Brasil with 11 goals
He finished the 2010 season with 42 goals in 60 games, as his club achieved the Double
Neymar was again voted best player of the year in 2011 as Santos retained the state title and also won the 2011 Copa Libertadores in which Neymar scored six goals in 13 appearances
He also played a key role in securing a Continental Double, Santos' first since 1963
Neymar received the Bronze Ball in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup, with Santos reaching the final, where they were defeated 4�0 by Barcelona.
Neymar has represented Brazil at Under-17, Under-20 and senior levels
On 10 August 2010, at the age of 18, he made his debut for the Sele��o in a friendly match against the United States; he scored from a header in the 28th minute, contributing to Brazil's 2�0 win
Neymar was the top scorer of the 2011 South American Youth Championship with nine goals, including two in the final, in the 6�0 win against Uruguay, helping Brazil to win their eleventh title in the competition
Neymar was selected as part of Luiz Felipe Scolari's Brazil squad for the 2013 Confederations Cup on home soil
For the tournament he was assigned the iconic number 10 shirt
On 30 June, Neymar scored Brazil's second goal in the 3�0 final win over Spain
Neymar's performances saw him awarded the golden ball for the best player of the tournament
At the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Neymar scored four goals before he fractured a vertebra in his spine in the quarter-finals and missed the rest of the tournament
He received the Bronze Boot as the tournament's third top goalscorer, and was named in the World Cup All Star XI
With 35 goals in 52 matches for Brazil, he is the sixth highest goalscorer for his national team
In 2012 and 2013, SportsPro named him the most marketable athlete in the world
In December 2013, Neymar was ranked by The Guardian as the sixth best player in the world.