Get to Know Brazilian Breakout Star Neymar

— -- Brazil's newest soccer icon -- like most of the country's players -- are known by just one name. At this year's World Cup that one name to know is Neymar.

The 22-year-old forward has emerged as a formidable player and scoring machine. An entire nation -- and Brazil soccer lovers around the world -- expect him to crush the competition and win the World Cup.

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Neymar, whose full name is Neymar da Silva Santos Junior is from Mogi das Cruzes, Sao Paulo. He'll be playing in front of a hometown crowd this afternoon when Brazil faces Croatia at the Arena Corinthians in the tournament opener.

The tremendously popular Neyamr has called Barcelona home for the past year and has a contract that extends through 2018. He appeared in 41 games during his debut season and racked up a respectable 15 goals, despite being briefly sidelined twice due to injuries.

Although it is still early in his career, Neymar has already drawn comparisons to another single-named Brazilian legend: Pele. When Neymar was overlooked for the World Cup in 2010, Pele stepped in (unsuccessfully) to vouch for him, according to ESPN.

He has also reportedly advised Neymar -- who is easy to spot due to his distinctive coif -- to stay at his Brazilian club, Santos, for a while longer before making the jump to European soccer. The wisdom seems to have paid off for Neymar.

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