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Lionel Messi: Dependency claims irk Argentina coach Martino

And Dunga, whose side will face arch-rivals Argentina in a World Cup qualifier tomorrow, is of the opinion that Neymar is presently playing better than his Barcelona team-mate Messi and Real Madrid star Ronaldo.

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“Neymar has improved consistently since he arrived at Barcelona (in 2013). He is the best Brazilian player in the world at the moment – it’s great to see him continue everything we have done before”, Ronaldinho was quoted as saying by FC Barcelona’s official website on Wednesday.

Argentina’s preparations have been disrupted by a slew of injuries which have deprived Martino of Messi, Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez and Pablo Zabaleta. They will be desperate to return to winning ways against Brazil on Friday and coach Gerardo Martino will be hoping his players will be at their best for this crucial World Cup qualifier.

And Dunga, who took charge of Brazil for the second time following the 2014 World Cup, can count upon a successful history against his country’s long-time foes.

Argentina suffered a shock 2-0 defeat at home to Ecuador in its opening game and then labored to a goalless stalemate against Paraguay in Asuncion.

“Argentina haven’t won a game yet so they have an extra motivation to beat Brazil”, he said.

They are seventh in their pool with just one point from two games.

Argentina will play Brazil in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying tournament on Thursday night, and this one will be a massive game neither team will want to lose.

The Albiceleste players say they are going to pull out all stops to get a win their Superclasico, which kicks off at 9pm local time on Thursday night in Buenos Aires.

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Brazil will win if… “I trained a very good Neymar but what he’s doing now puts him on a level with the two footballers we consider above the rest”, he said, referring to Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo. Not to mention, that Paris St-Germain’s Ezequiel Lavezzi and Angel Di Maria, are both healthy, available, and expected to play. As unlikely as it seems, Ecuador and Uruguay are two of the three teams tied on six points at the top of the qualifying table.

Brazil and Barcelona forward Neymar has been tipped to become the best player in the world