Brazil qualified for Russia 2018 by topping the South American standings

The FIFA World Cup Final Draw takes place in Moscow on Friday 1 December

Neymar: "Brazil are ready to face anyone" * * True to their past, Brazil are a formidable side once again. Following the disappointment of the last FIFA World Cup™ and the ensuing aftermath, the national team went back to their roots and rebuilt their reputation with a swashbuckling campaign to qualify for Russia 2018. Neymar has been one of the pillars of that renaissance. Arguably in the best form of his career right now, the No10 is the team's leader both on and off the pitch. At the next World Cup he is relishing the prospect of expanding on the promise he showed at the previous edition, before injury ended his tournament prematurely. Ahead of the Final Draw, Neymar spoke to FIFA.com about the Brazilian national team, regaining the respect they had lost, the role luck plays in winning the World Cup and the extent to which the traumatic experience at the last finals influenced the player he has become.

I think this World Cup is going to be huge for Brazilians. Personally, I'm going to give everything I've got to win it.

FIFA.com: Looking ahead to the draw for Russia 2018, is there any team Brazil would like to avoid? Neymar: No. Brazil are ready to face anyone. We train so that we're not afraid of anyone we might go up against. It's a World Cup, so the best teams are there. They're well-prepared sides with tremendous quality. You can't pick one team over another, thinking that they'll be weaker. You just have to be ready when you go to a World Cup. *How do you follow events like the Final Draw? *Obviously you can't wait to find out who you're going to play against. But I don't think it matters too much. It's one of those occasions where you put the popcorn in the microwave and call your family and friends together to watch it on television (laughs). *You say that the outcome of the draw does not matter so much, but how much luck is involved for a team to win the World Cup? *Luck? Very little. I don't think luck itself can help a team win it. I think the eventual champions are the ones that put in the hard work a long time beforehand, and are ready to face anyone in their group or in the knockout rounds. *Brazil seem to have regained the respect they lost in the wake of the 2014 World Cup. Do you agree? *Yes, I do. The respect towards the team now is different to what it was three or four years ago after the World Cup. People see us differently. The Brazil that everyone respects and admires is back; a team that enjoys good football. And that makes us happy. The mood of our fans and our country has changed. Everyone's confident and happy looking ahead to the World Cup. You can't put a price on that.

Que Deus nos abençoe e nos proteja 🙏🏽⚽️

God bless and protect us 🙏🏽⚽️ pic.twitter.com/BTV85GBV2Q — Neymar Jr (@neymarjr) October 10, 2017