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When Neymar Jr first arrived at Barcelona in 2013, everybody knew the Brazilian was a skilful, talented young player, who was going to cost a lot of money. However, people never knew how quickly he would adapt to European football or how quickly he would settle in. But they soon found out. After four incredible seasons with Barcelona, he’s now made a huge move to PSG, where he will be the star of the show. He will hope this helps him potentially get his hands on the lucrative Ballon d'Or.
Here are five reasons why Neymar will be a contender for the Ballon d’Oor next year:
#5 Already the third best player in the world
In most people’s opinion, Neymar is the third best player in the world. The 2016 Ballon d’Or did not suggest that, but he certainly is the biggest challenge to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for the individual trophy.
Ronaldo and Messi’s reign may not be up yet, but he is closing the gap on the two giants. He has finished in the top five the last two years, with one third place, and he is likely to receive a third place award again this year. This means he knows he is their biggest challenger, and with him being at a club where he can directly challenge Messi without playing for the same team, he has a much greater chance of going for the award.
With Neymar already being the third best player in the world, if he could step his game up to near Ronaldo and Messi’s level for goals and assists this upcoming season, he could overtake the two veterans at the top of the game.
#4 World Cup year
The next Ballon d'Or will be awarded after the 2018 World Cup, which will certainly help Neymar in his efforts to win the trophy.
At the 2014 World Cup, Brazilian hopes were dependent on Neymar, and he performed excellently. In two of the three group games, Neymar scored a brace sending them into the round of 16, where he then scored the winning penalty in a shootout.
But in the quarter finals, he was kneed in the back and ruled out for the rest of the tournament, effectively ending Brazil’s chances as they were humiliated by Germany in the semi-final, losing 7-1.
In 2018, Neymar could go one step further and win Brazil their sixth World Cup. If he does, he will be a strong contender for the Ballon d'Or. It would certainly be no surprise if he was to do so considering that when playing for Brazil his goal record is outstanding.
#3 PSG might win the UCL
PSG are rumoured to be favourites to sign Kylian Mbappe, and if they do, they could potentially win the Champions League in 2017. Neymar’s new club already have the likes of Angel di Maria, Edinson Cavani, Marco Verratti and Thiago Silva. Add that talent with the signings of Neymar and Dani Alves this season and they’re already strong contenders for the Champions League.
But, PSG’s transfer business is not supposed to stop there, Mbappe is supposedly keen to leave Monaco now and PSG are interested in acquiring the services of the Frenchman. If they do manage to pull off the signing of Mbappe, they will be signing one of the most talented young players in the world. He is just 18, and in the Champions League, where PSG will be keen to improve after their disaster last season, he scored six goals in six starts. This proves he would be more than capable of scoring important goals on the biggest stage of all.
The combinations between Neymar and Mbappe would be frightening, and with the Frenchman finishing off so many of Neymar’s created chances it’s only likely to boost his chances of winning the Ballon d'Or.
#2 Age is on his side
At 25 years of age, Neymar has many years ahead of him and this time he is potentially going to have the greatest season of his career.
Cristiano Ronaldo is now 32, and though he has become a goal-scoring machine, he plays less of a role than he previously did on the pitch. This is unlike Neymar, who contributes with both goals and assists, and is full of energy.
Messi, on the other hand, has become the opposite of Ronaldo as he has gotten older. In the best interests of the team, he has dropped deeper and deeper on the pitch, and his heat maps regularly show that. This means he has been able to showcase his magnificent passing ability, but has had to sacrifice some goal scoring positions.
This means with Neymar being much younger and heading into his prime years, he is able to take control of the match and contribute in all areas with goals and assists. If he can overtake Messi and Ronaldo’s statistics with goals and assists and prove himself for PSG in the Champions League, he could win the Ballon d'Or next year.
#1 Centre of attention
Neymar is now number one and by far the most important player at PSG. He is the most expensive player ever, and PSG’s play will be central to what the 25-year-old does and how he performs. This now allows him to steal the show and receive all the plaudits, rather than being in Messi’s shadow.
Neymar will always look up to the Argentinian, but with him looking to be a future Ballon d'Or winner, he needed this new challenge where he will be like Messi in PSG’s team, where he is by far the most important cog in the machine.
As mentioned previously, PSG already have talent in abundance, but Neymar will still be the best player. This will give him an enormous push towards winning the most important individual award of all, the Ballon d’Or.
