With a blockbuster transfer from his native Brazil and the infamous No.10 shirt already adorning his back for the national team, surely it can only be a matter of time before Neymar takes up the reins as the next great Brazilian to wear the coveted number for Barcelona. There is only one obstacle that stands in his way, and it is a fairly sizeable one in Lionel Messi.
A quick glance at the Argentine’s predecessors at No.10 is enough to excite the juices of football fans the world over. Neymar is guaranteed to be desperate to follow in the hallowed footsteps of Ronaldinho, Rivaldo and Romario, who all wore the number at the Nou Camp with immense distinction. Maradona was hardly a shabby proponent either.
Then of course, the current bearer, Messi, who is regarded by many as the game’s greatest ever player. A man who has won it all in Spain and boasts three Champions League winners medals, yet lacks the World Cup crown of the above four. A man who’s standing in Barcelona really shouldn’t be questioned, despite the arrival of Luis Suarez and the improvement in Neymar.
Yet in the build up to Argentina’s loss against Portugal on Tuesday, Messi came out with some comments that his father has immediately come out to play down. However the fact remains that Messi stoked the fires of a potential departure from Barca by conceding that despite wishing to stay at the club, “things change very quickly in football…you don't always get what you want.” He added that “it is complicated and even more so with all the things that are happening at Barcelona.”
At the age of 27, Messi is more than capable of attracting a monstrous transfer fee for at least the next couple of years, and should he depart then surely Neymar would be banging down the doors to take his teammates’ shirt.
The Brazilian has a goal-a-game from nine La Liga appearances so far this season, compared to Messi’s seven from 11, but more than his goalscoring touch he has become a more influential presence in the side. There must be plenty more improvement should he wish to elevate himself to the level of the four-time Ballon d’Or winner, and that of his countrymen Rivaldo and Ronaldinho.
Both forwards were named the world’s best player during their time in Catalonia, the latter twice, and both were responsible for some spine-tingling moments in the famous Blaugrana shirt. Who can forget Rivaldo’s incredible overhead kick to seal his hat trick and Champions League qualification with a last ditch 3-2 win against Valencia in 2001? Or the Bernabeu rising to applaud Ronaldinho, a man who redefined how the modern game is played, after he had taken Real Madrid’s Galacticos apart on their own turf exactly nine years ago, an extraordinary standing ovation coming after his second scintillating goal of the evening.
These are the boots Neymar must fill, although his burgeoning status at the Nou Camp has led former Barca hero Romario to claim that his compatriot “has everything to be bigger than Messi”. Taking his shirt would just be the start for a man with a huge future in the game.
