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For the longest time, there have been comparisons made between the old duo of Ronaldinho-Messi and the current rage of the Neymar-Messi partnership at Barcelona. Pictures have flown about on the internet that illustrate the many similarities between the two duos on the surface.There are many differences between them, for example, Ronaldinho assisted Messi’s first goal for Barcelona, while Neymar scored from someone else’s pass for the first time, though the Argentine was crucial in the build-up. That, however, seems more like the exception than the rule since the two formed a deadly partnership between them last season, playing massive roles in Barca’s march to the treble.Few can be faulted for seeing the duo of old in the current team because there have been some incredible similarities in their relationship. It runs deeper than just celebrations or pictures that depict Messi and Neymar in similar pictures as the ones featuring Ronaldinho with the Argentine superstar.
#1 The Argentina-Brazil connection
This perhaps is a coincidence, but it makes for a good combination. Nonetheless the vital piece of this puzzle is that in the case of all three players involved, at different points, they have been the focal points of their national team.
When Messi broke through at Barcelona, he also found his feet for the Argentina senior national team and has never looked back since. The same has been true for Neymar since his days at Santos. The little difference in this case was that the young Brazilian was taking up the mantle from Ronaldinho who was the spirit of the Brazil national team in the previous years.
It also made for the combination of two different styles of play that are often seen on the opposite sides of the pitch in one of the greatest international football rivalries. Funnily enough they complemented each other to a great extent and continue to do so.
If Barcelona have been looking for someone to follow in Messi’s footsteps in the long term, perhaps it would make their job easier to restrict themselves to Argentina and find a prodigy to link up with Neymar in the future.
#2 Master and pupil
It’s almost traditional that the older more experienced heads in any team impart their wisdom to the younger ones and ensure that the upcoming stars are instilled with the right mentality to carry the team forward when the time comes for the old guard to depart.
However, few relationships of mentor and pupil blossom on a football pitch, especially when the two players are competing for similar positions of the pitch. It’s often the coach that takes on the figure of autority and guides players, but Ronaldinho proved to be the right guidance in case of Messi’s growth.
It’s quite evident that Messi seems to be applying some if not most of the teaching he was given as a youngster to his partner in attack Neymar. Sure, the duo now have Luis Suarez with them now who can also put in a few words of advice to Neymar, but it’s been by and large Messi’s influence that appears in the Brazilian’s play.
In both Ronaldinho and Messi’s case, at the time of the introduction of a talented new youngster, they were widely considered the pinnacle of the game’s skill and quality, hence termed the master in the equation. Even the pupils were in both instances among the bets talent the world had in that moment.
#3 Samba and skill
Would you term Neymar and Messi as similar players? The only aspect that they share is that they vie for the same places in the team. As far as style of play goes, they’re apples and oranges.
In fact, Neymar has the Samba flair typical of Ronaldinho. They both embody the football their entire nation stands for and have at different times brought that to Barcelona and stunned the world with their unique ability to do things that few others would even think of.
Even the Barcelona Twitter account agrees as they refer to Neymar’s goal against Villareal and compare it to a similar piece of skill from Ronaldinho in years gone by.
Messi, though skillful in his own right is more about the feints and quick feet as his predecessor at Argentina Diego Maradona was. Funnily enough though, some of the best moments on the football pitch have been produced when these two were mixed.
#4 No added pressure
One of the greatest problems faced by young players walking into senior squads is that they’re often faced with the immense expectation to perform almost immediately. It’s a burden that grows exponentially when a player is at a big club like Barcelona.
However, neither Lionel Messi, nor Neymar were faced with a situation where they had to prove themselves immediately. While the Argentine immediately impressed with his performances, the Brazilian showed his flair only in patches before getting into the groove at the Catalan club.
The key for them was that they had others in the team, crucially in the form of Ronaldinho for Messi and he in turn became the foil for Neymar to integrate themselves into the side. There was the desire for a good performance from them but not the immediate need, allowing them to express themselves and grow into games.
Neither needed too much time to find their way, but will be thankful for the support in the period they started off and has so influenced the players they are now and hope to be in the future.
#5 Flexibility
It’s not easy to play alongside another player who you know is lined up as a replacement for you in the near future. Some may take the route that makes life difficult for the next generation remaining adamant that their way of doing things is the direction to go and in the process might become inflexible in the way or position that they prefer.
There was none of that in case of Barcelona’s duos in both cases, Neither Ronaldinho, nor Messi were fazed by the introduction of new talent. They instead embraced it with open arms and played in tandem with them.
The thing that both mentors excelled at was feeling what was required of them and delivering to perfection. Messi and Dinho both thrust themselves into the spotlight when they were needed to and on other occasions dropped deeper and played the non-glamorous passes if they felt it was what their team-mates needed from them.
Fortunately, the system in attack for Barcelona has remained largely fluid in terms of positioning over the years and all three players have done justice to the slightly different roles they took up in their respective times and it is what has made them among the best partnerships we’ve witnessed on a footballing pitch.
