João Pedro has claimed that Chelsea teammate Cole Palmer is good enough to start for Brazil.
Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, the 24-year-old striker described how impressed he was by Palmer in training when he first arrived at the club.
"He's very intelligent. He's magic," the Brazilian said. "I said to him before, 'I didn't think you were that good.' And he looked at me [with a quizzical expression]. But now, because I play with him, yeah, he's different.
"I said to him, 'Why don't you come to Brazil? Take the number 10 there, mate. No problem.'
"Because in Brazil, we don't have this guy. If you watch us we play 4-2-4. We don't have a number 10," he added.
"Cole is a different guy. Sometimes he's quiet, but then [snaps fingers]. One second, he's changed the game. So he's very good."
Both Palmer and João Pedro were surprise omissions from their respective World Cup squads, with Carlo Ancelotti opting to include Neymar, and the likes of Morgan Rogers and Noni Madueke forcing their way into Thomas Tuchel's plans.
Neymar has missed Santos' last three games and the first Brazil training camp with a bruised right calf, but said this week that he does not expect the injury to affect him at the World Cup.
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"[Ancelotti] says he doesn't want one guy," João Pedro said of the manager's approach to picking his squad. "He wants the group. Because he thinks the group has more power than one guy.
"And I think with him there, when he talks, people listen. Because he wins everything. And with the players, he tries to build relationships with everyone.
"He tells you what he wants to do but also gives the freedom for you to play your football, to enjoy [it]. So, I think he's very good for the team."
