What’s the story?
Barcelona winger Neymar has been in stunning form this season and now the Brazilian has revealed that he would like to win the prestigious Ballon d’Or award someday. Speaking to Sport Express, Neymar said:
"To win the Ballon d'Or is something that I've set as a goal, it would be a personal victory. But I'm not in a hurry. Personal goals are not the reason I'm in football. I play for pleasure. I like to help my teammates and my team. If everything goes well, the individual awards will come."
Neymar is starting to step out of the shadows this season, especially after his brilliant performance in Barcelona’s incredible 6-1 victory over PSG in the Champions League. He has also been in fine form for his country Brazil and he has really upped his game in the past few months.
Also read: Tactical analysis: What's next for FC Barcelona?
In case you didn’t know...
Lionel Messi has been Barcelona’s talisman since 2008 and is still one of the most important members of the Barcelona squad. However, Neymar with his eye-catching performances since the turn of the year is quickly showing the Catalan fans that there is life without Messi.
Also, certain sections of the media already consider Neymar to be a better player than Messi with a former Argentine fitness coach even calling Neymar the best player in world football at the moment.
The heart of the matter
Probably the most prestigious individual award in world football, the Ballon d’Or since 2008 has become a personal rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Neymar has been touted by many to break the duopoly and this year could be the year where we will have a new winner.
With Ronaldo 32, and Messi struggling to live upto his impossibly high standards, the emergence of the Brazilian forward has definitely put a new name into the hat for the Ballon d’Or award. However, there is no personal rivalry between Neymar and Messi. Neymar, when asked about his relationship with Messi, said:
"Messi is a player that I've admired since I came to Barcelona. He's helped me since the moment I arrived. I've always admired his determination and attitude"
What’s next?
Neymar with his brilliant performances for Barcelona and Brazil in the international break is currently in a rich vein of form and Luis Enrique and the Barcelona fans will be hoping that the winger continues putting in stellar performances.
With Lionel Messi suspended for the game against Granda, the onus will be on Neymar to step up and guide the Catalan giants to a routine win over the La Liga strugglers.
Also read: Sampaoli dreaming of coaching Messi
Author’s take
Neymar with his performances since the start of 2017 has shown that he is definitely among the top 3 players in world football at the moment. If he continues performing consistently at this very high level, we could very well see him crowned the 2017 Ballon d’Or winner at the end of the year.
