Neymar has been named football’s most valuable player ahead of Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi, according to a new in-depth study.
The Brazil forward, 25, has been rated at £185 million ($234m), easily beating Tottenham’s Dele Alli, who comes in second at £137m ($173m).
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The CIES Football Observatory study uses an algorithm factored through almost 2,000 transfers and is based on performance of both players and employer clubs, international status, contract, age and position.
Due in part to their ages of 29 and 32 respectively, Messi and Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo (£99m/$125m) are slightly further down the list at No.4 and No.11.
Ronaldo is the oldest player in the list of 110 players, while Monaco’s teenage prodigy Kylian Mbappe (£81m/$102m), who comes in at No.18, is the youngest.
Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann (fifth) and Spurs striker Harry Kane (third) are understood to be on Manchester United’s list of summer targets.
Despite winning the Champions League for two consecutive seasons, Real Madrid only have Ronaldo in the top 25, with their second-highest player being midfielder Toni Kroos (28th, £71m/$90m).
WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE FOOTBALLERS
1. Neymar, Barcelona, £185m ($234m)
2. Dele Alli, Tottenham, £137m ($173m)
3. Harry Kane, Tottenham, £135m ($171m)
4. Lionel Messi, Barcelona, £134m ($170m)
5. Antoine Griezmann, Atletico Madrid, £132m ($167m)
6. Luis Suarez, Barcelona, £124m ($157m)
7. Paul Pogba, Manchester United, £119m ($150m)
8. Gonzalo Higuain, Juventus, £106m ($134m)
9. Eden Hazard, Chelsea, £104m ($131m)
10. Paulo Dybala, Juventus, £102m ($129m)
.yahoo