The father of Barcelona superstar Neymar has claimed the forward committed his future to the Catalan club due to Lionel Messi.

The Brazilian joined Barcelona on a mega deal ahead of rivals Real Madrid back in 2013, and has since helped the side claim the La Liga trophy twice, as well as the Champions League.

The player’s father said the chance of playing with five-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi had tipped the scales in the Blaugrana’s favour, with the Argentinian continuing to inspire his Brazilian understudy.

‘We all know who Messi is and what he means. He is the idol of my son and for him it’s a pleasure being at his side,’ Neymar’s father told Cope. ‘He is always happy for playing together and he is playing here for Messi.

‘If Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo never existed probably Neymar never existed too; the same with Pele and Maradona, both inspired a lot of players.’

The 24-year-old Neymar recently signed a contract extension at Barcelona until 2021. Meanwhile, Neymar Sr also backed Messi to claim the Ballon d’Or this season, despite Ronaldo being considered the front-runner.