Luis Enrique hails Barca 'beast' Neymar

Barcelona boss Luis Enrique showered Neymar in praise following his century milestone on Sunday.

Published : Apr 03, 2017 17:59 IST

Luis Enrique described Neymar as a "beast" and hopes to see the Barcelona star score another 900 goals after celebrating his 100th strike for the La Liga giant.

It was a match to remember for Neymar, who brought up the century milestone in Barca's 4-1 win over Granada on Sunday.

The 25-year-old Brazil international joined the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in Barca's 100 club after 177 appearances thanks to his stoppage-time volley.

And head coach Luis Enrique showered Neymar — who moved to Camp Nou from Santos in 2013 — in praise post-match.

"He has numbers [which show he is] a beast of a footballer," Luis Enrique said.

"He's one of the most unbalancing players in the world [for opposition defences] and his signing by this club was a great decision.

"I hope he scores another 900 goals, so we can keep seeing him at Barcelona for many more years."

As for the team's performance, Luis Enrique was pleased with what he saw following the international break.

Barca stayed within two points of La Liga leader and bitter rival Real Madrid courtesy of goals from Suarez, Paco Alcacer, Ivan Rakitic and Neymar as Gerard Pique was rested and Messi served a suspension.

"The weeks after international games are always special, we have a lot of players who have had trips and are tired, and above all a game away from home always adds to the difficulty level, but I think we did very well," the Spanish boss said.

"We started well, dealing with the opponent's high press, creating chances and perhaps we lacked a little precision in the final metres, but the 1-0 score at half-time reflected our dominance.

"It was trickier for us at the start of the second half with the goal, but we soon improved and were able to earn a result like this."

Luis Enrique singled out Alcacer, who has struggled for opportunities since arriving from Valencia but came off the bench and scored at Los Carmenes.

"Paco is always ready to help the team," added Luis Enrique. "Even when he doesn't have a chance to start. He scored a goal, he got an assist and he played a very complete game."

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