Neymar: Brazil star's bold claim about Casemiro after Switzerland game | OneFootball

Casemiro secured Brazil’s progression to the World Cup knockout phase with an exquisite match-winning goal vs Switzerland.

The Manchester United star’s special strike was the sole difference between the two sides as the Selecao ran out 1-0 winners in what was a largely dull affair.

Many expected Brazil to pick up where they left off against Serbia and dispatch of Switzerland in epic fashion.

However, those fans were left feeling a little underwhelmed as the European nation managed to stifle the flair and creativity of their South American counterparts.

Brazil’s talisman, Neymar, was missing for the encounter after he picked up an ankle injury in their first group game.

They missed his influence when attacking and with the clock ticking down towards the end of the second half, it seemed as though a 0-0 stalemate was an inevitability after Vinicius Jr was denied his first World Cup goal due to an offside call.

That was until Casemiro popped up with an absolute corker of a strike in the 83rd minute of play.

Casemiro had arguably been the standout performer on the day, marshalling the midfield to perfection.

But to pop up with a winning goal? Now that’s a series of events barely anybody would have anticipated.

As it happens, though, nobody was more deserving of a match-winning moment than the veteran midfield general.

And with the hype surrounding him at a near all-time high, teammate Neymar tweeted an appreciation post.

The PSG star simply stated: “Casemiro has been the best midfielder in the world for a long time.”

Within 45 minutes of the tweet going live it had accumulated nearly 20,000 retweets, demonstrating Casemiro’s popularity with football fans across the world.

But does Neymar have a point? Arguably so, yes. Especially when it comes to defensive midfielders, maybe we’ll leave the ‘very best’ tag to Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne.

Nevertheless, check out Casemiro’s seriously impressive highlights from Monday’s clash between Brazil and Switzerland.

Maybe that will help aid your decision on where Casemiro ranks amongst the world’s finest midfield operators.

Wow, absolutely world class from five-time Champions League winner.

Such is Brazil’s squad that Casemiro fends off competition from Fabinho and Bruno Guimaraes for a place in his nation’s starting eleven.

Watching footage like this, though, it’s easy to see why he’s surely one of the first names on the team sheet for Brazil at this World Cup.