Opinion Neymars test will be with Barca
Neymar is presently lighting up the Confederations Cup on home soil with two wonder goals in the first two matches
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Neymar is presently lighting up the Confederations Cup on home soil with two wonder goals in the first two matches for Brazil. He is playing his first big international tournament and so far has lived up to the expectations. Barcelona,however,will be a different ball game altogether. The 21-year old forward signed a five-year contract with the Catalans for close to $76.3 million recently and there is already some pressure.
One of the concerns that has been raised is with his weight. At 64.5 kilograms,is Neymar too light to succeed in European football? And the person to raise it was FC Barcelona team doctor Ricard Pruna. He is lacking the odd little kilo, said Dr Pruna. That,however,will be the least of Neymar’s concerns when he teams up with Barcelona.
He will not be the first slightly built Barcelona player whose efficiency sceptics have doubted. After all,Lionel Messi is 57′ and 67 kgs,this after years of human growth hormone treatment to set right a genetic defect. Almost the entire Barcelona side is populated by players who are well below the six foot mark,and going by the success the team has enjoyed in the last half-decade,physicality is clearly not the only or most important requirement for footballing success.
Unlike in the English Premier League,where the physical element is more pronounced,technique,skill and lightness of touch are more valued in Spain,all of which Neymar seems to possess. It is whether the Brazilian can fit into the famous ‘tika-taka’ scheme of things that remains the biggest question.
Whether it is with Brazil of late or his last club Santos,Neymar has been the focal point of the side’s attacks. That will change when he is a part of an assembly of stars at Barcelona. The Spanish champions play football that is slick,where players pass and move and the formation is fluid.
Without the ball,there is as much work,as Barcelona press their opposition hard. These are aspects of the game that would be new to Neymar. While his skill suggests he could adapt,there are also precedents that suggest talent alone may not be enough. Case in point: Zlatan Ibrahimovich who was brought for close to 70 million Euros from Inter lasted just a season at Barcelona.
Shamik is a principal correspondent based in Kolkata.
shamik.chakrabarty@expressindia.com
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