Brazil captain Thiago Silva has expressed his hopes of Neymar emulating Paris Saint-Germain teammates Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe in inspiring their countries through to the World Cup quarter-finals.
On Saturday, Mbappe scored twice as France claimed a thrilling 4-3 win over Argentina, before Cavani also netted a brace in Uruguay's 2-1 victory to send Portugal home.
On Monday, Brazil face Mexico in Samara and, even though Neymar has not yet hit top form at the tournament, Thiago is confident that the 26-year-old can follow in the footsteps of their PSG colleagues.
"Yesterday when the games were over I thought the same thing, that in our game it's going to be with Neymar," Thiago told a media conference. "[Cavani and Mbappe] were both fundamental for the victories, and even if [Angel] Di Maria was eliminated he played very well.
"PSG were well represented but we're talking about the national team and I think we're well balanced. In the right moments the attackers have the freedom to do what they do best... we hope tomorrow is a great day and Neymar is inspired, like the other players."
Brazil will be hoping to improve on their showing at the 2014 World Cup, the hosts reaching the semi-finals before being hammered 7-1 by eventual champions Germany.
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