For the past few years, there has been a general consensus of opinion
among football supporters that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are
the best players in the world.
You might argue about the order in which they should be
placed, but few fans - aside from some Barcelona or Real Madrid
followers who are unwilling to praise their greatest enemy's biggest
star - would question the suggestion that those two are head and
shoulders above everybody else.
That impression is supported by the result of the
annual Ballon d'Or award, which has been presented to Messi in 2009,
2010, 2011 and 2012 and to Ronaldo in 2008, 2013 and 2014, with nobody
else claiming the prize since Kaka in 2007.
Now, however, perhaps it is time to reconsider the old
notion that nobody else comes close to touching Messi and Ronaldo,
because another flamboyant talent is also performing at similarly
outrageous levels: Neymar.
And this weekend he could have no bigger stage to prove
it, as Barcelona travel to Real Madrid for the first Clasico of the
season.
A statement of genius
Neymar scored twice in Barcelona's 3-0 win over Villarreal
Late on in Barcelona's home game with Villarreal this
month, with the hosts leading 2-0 through goals from Neymar and Luis
Suarez, a familiar chant echoed around the Nou Camp as fans reminded an
injured hero that he had not been forgotten: "Meeessi, Meeessi,
Meeessi…"
While they sang, Barca surged forward and Luis Suarez
advanced down the left before curling a bouncing cross towards Neymar on
the edge of the penalty area.
What Neymar did next will never be forgotten by those
fortunate enough to witness it, with the Brazilian forward conjuring a
piece of magic which his national team coach Dunga later described as
"the sort of thing that makes football the beautiful game".
With his back to goal, Neymar controlled the cross with
his stomach, then immediately flicked it over his head to lose his
marker and swivelled 180 degrees to meet the dropping ball with a fierce
low volley which flew into the back of the net.
The goal was met with astonishment as much as
jubilation, and more than 70,000 fans rose to their feet to acclaim the
scorer by quickly adapting their previous chant: "Neeeymar, Neeeymar,
Neeeymar."
Same song, different name and, although he obviously
did not mean it in this way, the goal felt like a symbolic moment with
Neymar delivering an emphatic message to the watching world: 'Forget
Messi. I'm king now.'
Neymar's stunning second goal received widespread praise across social media
Goals, goals, goals
That goal against Villarreal was Neymar's 11th of the
season in La Liga, making him the league's top scorer - three ahead of
Ronaldo despite playing 93 fewer minutes.
Not insignificantly, he has been in a particularly rich
vein of form during Messi's spell on the sidelines, rising to the
challenge of compensating for his fellow South American's absence by
scoring 10 goals in his past seven club games.
Although this season's achievements have been
particularly impressive, nobody should be too surprised to see Neymar
making such a big impact because he has been scoring goals for fun ever
since breaking into the Santos first team at the age of 17.
He is still only 23, yet Neymar has 249 career goals: 136 for Santos, 67 for Barcelona and 46 for Brazil.
To put those figures into context, by the time Messi
and Ronaldo reached the age Neymar is now (23 years and nine months),
they had 'only' registered respective career goal tallies of 186 and
127.
Each case is different, with Ronaldo needing some time
to develop into the awesome physical specimen he is today, while Messi's
younger years were spent in a Barcelona team containing other
established stars who commanded more than their fair share of attention.
Furthermore, you could argue that a chunk of Neymar's
early goals came 'cheaply' as they were scored in the relatively low
standard Brazilian state championship.
While it does not necessarily follow that Neymar will
end up scoring more goals than Messi and Ronaldo simply because he has
scored more than them by his current age, surely it suggests that this
young man from Sao Paulo should be taken seriously as a potential
all-time great?
Already the best?
Neymar's electrifying performances over the past few
weeks have attracted considerable attention in Spain and Albert Masnou,
the deputy editor of Barcelona-based newspaper Sport, believes he is
playing better than Ronaldo.
"At the moment he is surpassing Ronaldo," Masnou told
BBC Sport. "Cristiano is enduring a 'grey' period, uncomfortable with
his club and his coach. He isn't leading his team or serving as their
reference point, although that could easily change in just one game.
"But Neymar has become more integral to Barca. He is
more consistent and growing a lot as the years go by. Now he is capable
of leading the team when Messi's not there, and we are seeing his full
potential."
Those views were echoed by a man who knows Neymar
extremely well: Tata Martino, who was his coach at Barcelona when he
arrived from Santos in the summer of 2013 and who is now in charge of
Argentina.
Before last week's World Cup qualifier between the two
nations, Martino commented: "Neymar has reached a point of maturity.
What he's doing now puts him on a level with the two footballers we
consider above the rest."
Ronaldinho, who remains a revered figure among
Barcelona fans, was also glowing in his tribute of his countryman as he
enthused: "Neymar is a phenomenon. It's nice to see a Brazilian
continuing to make history and I think he can be the greatest in the
world."
A Messi dilemma
It will soon get much harder for Neymar to maintain his
recent standards, however, because Messi's absence through injury is
nearly over. And when that happens, the focus of the Barca team and
everyone else - fans, media and opponents - will immediately return to
the Argentine.
Messi is, quite simply, the man around whom the
Catalans have built their team, and when he is on the pitch the primary
function of the other 10 players is to service him.
Messi's status is illustrated off the pitch by the
parrot-like phrase trotted out weekly by every Barca player that he is
"the best player in the world", and manager Luis Enrique notably brushed
aside a question after the Villarreal game asking whether Neymar is the
second best, instead blandly asserting that he is proud to coach lots
of great players.
Neymar's touches
|
|
Last three games with Messi
|
Last three games without Messi
|
74 v Roma
|
105 v Getafe
|
76 v Levante
|
111 v Bate Borisov
|
64 v Celta Vigo
|
95 v Villarreal
|
Average: 71.3
|
Average: 105
|
Considering Messi's consistent greatness, the reliance
upon him is understandable. But it does mean the other players are
forced to somewhat subdue their natural games in order to meet the
demands of contributing to a team built around Messi.
Some, such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alexis Sanchez,
have been forced to leave in order to allow their personal talents to
flourish. Others - and there is perhaps no better example than Neymar -
have accepted that role and made the most out of playing for Messi
first, the team second and themselves third.
Masnou says Neymar will, in the short term, have no problem stepping out of the spotlight once Messi returns.
"He didn't join Barca to overshadow Messi, but to be
his heir," Masnou said. "Neymar has been the king for two months but he
knows that when Messi is there, the leader is Messi."
Heir apparent
Neymar is widely regarded in Barcelona as the heir
apparent: the player lined up to become the team's focal point when
Messi has retired or entered into decline.
The question, however, is how much longer Neymar will
be prepared to accept that role. Messi is only 28 and could still be
performing at or near his peak for another four or five years.
By then, Neymar will be in his late 20s and may well
have grown tired of being the chief member of the supporting cast rather
than taking the lead role.
Perhaps the key for Barca will be to create a slightly
more level playing field, one which places just as much importance in
Neymar as it does in Messi: to use Masnou's poetic phrase, a system
which makes them "equal protagonists".
The past few weeks have suggested that Neymar is good
enough to merit a more elevated standing, placing him shoulder to
shoulder with Messi rather than deferentially looking up to him.
Whether Messi will be prepared to share his crown is another matter.
Source: (
BBC)
