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Neymar da Silva Santos Junior is the man the whole world is talking about. He’s the man the fans want to see and the player that defenders don’t want to face. Many have labelled Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the two best players in the world, but there comes a time when the torch must be passed. That torch can be passed voluntarily or be taken by force and Neymar has taken up the mantle by default.
Neymar is the best player in the world right now. Here’s why.
#5 He’s the most talked about player
Every football fan on the planet is talking about Neymar da Silva Santos right now. The Brazilian cannot help but trend online every day on all social media platforms. And it’s not as if the price is the only thing people are talking about. Neymar has already directly contributed to 6 goals in his opening 2 games for Paris Saint-Germain. That’s what you call living up to the hype.
The only time people are now talking about Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo is in negative terms. People are now saying Lionel Messi is declining while Ronaldo’s petulant push on a referee has left him on the sidelines for 5 games.
It’s only the best two players in the world that steal all the headlines week in week out but now the Brazilian has eclipsed them both, making him the best player in the world right now.
#4 He’s the most expensive player ever for a reason
Neymar is genuinely a player who deserves such a fee. It’s hard to picture another player commanding the same fee because no one is on par with the Brazilian today. He has everything going for him; ability, talent, age, marketability and likeability. He’s not only the face of football today, he’s the face of sport.
Forget the rising inflation present in the transfer market today, there’s a reason as to why the Brazilian’s fee was more than double the price of the previous record. He’s the most expensive because he’s in a league of his own and can comfortably walk into any starting XI in the world.
He’s a prised asset that’s too valuable to be put on the market ever again, that says something. PSG believed in the player's ability, so they weren't hesitant in breaking his massive release clause.
#3 He’s the undisputed main man of PSG
To be the best you must first become the main man at your club. At Barcelona, despite regularly outperforming Messi on a weekly basis, the Argentine always stole the limelight in the media. His move to Paris wasn’t motivated by money, it was motivated by ambition.
At a true super club, the 25-year old can now be the centre of the show and let everyone know in no uncertain terms that he is the best player in the world right now. Six goals in just two appearances is also a lot more to show than what Messi and Ronaldo have done so far this season.
At the Parc de Princes, Neymar will be surrounded by world-class talent like Edison Cavani, Marco Verratti and Angel di Maria but they will certainly be playing to the Brazilian’s tune as he is now the orchestrator at PSG.
#2 His international record speaks for itself
When it comes to the international stage, neither Messi or Ronaldo can talk to Neymar. Yes, the other two may be national icons but only Neymar has had to carry the whole weight of a nation on his back. The statistics convey that whole narrative too.
At the age of just 25, Neymar has already scored 52 goals for the national team. Bear in mind the all-time record is held by Pele at 77, it’s almost inevitable that the PSG winger will surpass that.
When Neymar limped out injured at the 2014 World Cup, the whole world and a nation held their breath. His presence was missed sorely and it undoubtedly contributed to Brazil’s worst ever international defeat. Now let’s contrast that to when Ronaldo limped off injured in the Euro 2016 final, what happened? Portugal galvanised themselves and beat the hosts.
When Messi decided to retire from international football, Agüero, Di Maria and Higuain stepped up. See the difference? Brazil crumbles without Neymar because he is the best player in the world.
#1 He outperformed Messi last season
Do you want to know why Barcelona are in such a mess right now? It’s because Neymar, not Lionel Messi, was the go to man for the Catalonian club last season. When the chips were down, Neymar dug deep on several occasions to rescue his failing teammates, ironically the comeback against PSG was the Brazilian’s most glorious moment.
Not only did Neymar (89) create more chances than Messi (78) last season, he (27) also provided more assists than the Argentinian (19). He replaced Messi as the sole creator of the team.
Now we’ll see how far Barcelona fall without the best player in the world to bail them out.
