Neymar admits that he did not feel comfortable when he had a trial at Real Madrid at the age of 13, and says that he was not ready to move to Europe at the time.
The Brazil international, now a superstar at Barcelona, visited the Santiago Bernabeu for a spell in 2005, but opted to remain with Santos for a further eight years before moving to Camp Nou.
And Neymar, now 24, accepts that he simply was not ready to move to a new continent at such a young age.
He told L'Equipe: "I was 13, it was the first time I came to Europe. At that time, I did not feel comfortable, I did not see myself happy and able to stay away from Brazil so young.
"I did not feel it and I was not in a hurry - there was no emergency. The priority was that I was happy, that I become a professional footballer and then I could come to play in Europe."
In three years at Barca, Neymar has won two LaLiga titles, the Champions League, two Copas del Rey and the Club World Cup.
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