Taffarel: Neuer better than Iker

Claudio Taffarel believes Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas is past his prime, and has hailed Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer as the world's best. The former Brazil international, who was capped over 100 times and won the World Cup in 1994, is currently a goalkeeping coach at Turkish club Galatasaray, a post he has held since 2011. Casillas has lost his first-team place at Real Madrid over the past year, even after the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti as the club's new manager in the off-season. The 31-year-old fell out of favour with former Real manager Jose Mourinho under somewhat controversial circumstances, having been the club's undisputed number one for a number of years. Neuer, on the other hand, appears to be enjoying the best form of his career, having joined Bayern from Schalke in 2011. The 27-year-old is currently the German national team's number one and Taffarel has heaped praise on the man from Gelsenkirchen, saying he is a better player than legendary shot stopper Oliver Khan. Taffarel told Sport Bild: "For me, Neuer is the best goalkeeper in the world at the moment. Casillas is past his best, whereas Neuer is still getting better. "The way he plays as a goalkeeper and his technique are extraordinary. Not just in possession, but mainly how he parries and catches shots. "Someone like Oliver Kahn never had this kind of technique. Kahn was a great goalkeeper, but Germany have had better shot stoppers. "Neuer is definitely better than Kahn was. I've known for years that he would become an impressive goalkeeper."