World Cup 2018: 4 prime candidates for the Golden Ball award after the Round of 16

#2 Neymar

Neymar, like Brazil, has had a roller-coaster ride at the World Cup. Having been outmuscled and performed below expectations against Switzerland, he bounced back with influential performances for Brazil in their last two group games against Costa Rica and Switzerland.

He was remarkable against Mexico in the Round of 16 having scored like a renowned poacher and played the penultimate part in Firmino's goal to seal a 2-0 victory for Brazil.

Having scored 2 goals and provided 1 assist in 4 games, Neymar, after the exit of Messi and Ronaldo has the opportunity to keep the spotlight on himself in the quarterfinals. He has completed 168 successful passes and on an average plays 49.3 passes per game. Having scored 2 goals from 12 shots on target, Neymar will look to improve this stat against Belgium.

He will certainly be one of the frontrunners for the Golden Ball award at the end of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.