Neymar lauded by Barça team-mates
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| AFP |
Back in 2007, Ratatouille was cleaning up at the box office and Amy Winehouse’s Rehab was playing on radio stations everywhere. On the pitch, meanwhile, Boca Juniors won the Copa Libertadores and AC Milan the UEFA Champions League after getting the better of Liverpool in an exciting final. Rossoneri star Kaka went on to cap a superb year by inspiring the Italian club to glory at the FIFA Club World Cup and then proudly stepping up to collect the FIFA Ballon d’Or at the Gala held in Zurich shortly afterwards.
Since those distant days, the biggest individual award in football has been the sole preserve of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. And in all that time, not one player from football-mad Brazil has made the final three-man shortlist for the award. Until, that is, the emergence of Neymar.
A superstar is born
Blessed with stellar quality, the precocious Barcelona forward has come into his own in 2015. His haul of 39 goals in 51 matches went a long way in helping Barça claim the treble, a notable triumph followed by their UEFA Super Cup win and Neymar’s inclusion on the very select list of contenders for the FIFA Ballon d’Or.
“He’s a vital player for us,” the inimitable Andres Iniesta told FIFA.com. “He’s grown an awful lot since he arrived, both on an individual and team level. Some of the things he does sometimes might seem surprising, but the fact is that he’s so talented he makes them seem absolutely normal.”
“He’s one of the best three players in the world, no doubt,” said Gerard Pique before adding that the statistics do not tell the whole story about Neymar’s contribution. “It’s not just about goals and assists but intensity and the ability to go past people. There’s also the fact that in our system the forwards are the first line of defence and the pressure they exert is also important.”
In the opinion of those who know him best, Neymar is nothing short of the complete player and unquestionably deserving of an invitation to the FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala. This time, however, he will be going as one of the best three players in the planet, having attended the event on three previous occasions: as the winner of the FIFA Puskás Award in 2011 and as a nominee for the same accolade in each of the two following years.
Sky’s the limit
It seems hard to believe that the Brazilian is still only 23. When he first ran out for Santos at the age of 17 it was clear that there was something special about him, and in scoring 14 goals in 48 appearances in his first season with the club, he fired the dreams of Brazilian fans. Amid the tributes to his talent, however, there were words of caution. After all, how many times in the past had exciting new talents emerged only to fail to deliver when the spotlight was on them?
As far as his team-mates are concerned, Neymar has shaped his own brilliant destiny. “In 2011 we played Santos and Ney in the Club World Cup final and we beat them 4-0 in one of the best games we can remember,” recalled Pique. “I think that’s when he saw that Brazil was getting a bit small for him and when he wanted to see what playing at big club was like. He saw that at Barça he’d be able to grow as a player, and there’s no doubt in my mind that he feels happy here.”
For a player who has more than lived up to expectations, such praise is more than deserved. The question now is, how far can the quicksilver forward go? Another of his team-mates, Belgian central defender Thomas Vermaelen, provided the answer: “He’s a world class player. When Messi was injured, he carried the team and was in absolutely amazing form. He reminds me of Leo in fact, but obviously he’s younger and still has a long way to go. In my opinion, though, he has the potential to go on and become the best in the world.”
The stats certainly back up Vermaelen’s view. In the six weeks that the Argentinian ace was sidelined with injury, Neymar scored no fewer than ten goals and served up six assists. With the Brazilian and strike partner Luis Suarez leading the line, Los Culés won seven out of nine matches, drew one and lost the other, a run that saw them storm to the top of the Spanish league table.
Fittingly, the last word on Neymar’s meteoric rise goes to Messi, the man the Brazilian regards as his idol and role model. Proving just as direct and decisive as he is on the pitch, the four-time FIFA Ballon d’Or winner put an end to any debate: “He’s an absolutely great player. In the time I’ve played with him he’s amazed me with how much he’s grown, on every level. And it goes without saying that I’m delighted he’s on our side.”