Neymar : The Prince who never became a King
In 2013, a 21-year-old Brazilian set foot on the Camp Nou pitch, in front of 58000 supporters. The youngster dazzled fans, with his incredible skill, and then-President Sandro Rosell introduced Neymar Jr to Europe. There had already been a lot of hype surrounding him, and deservedly so. He was already the best player in South America, a Puskas award winner, and one of the most promising footballers on the planet. He had already been linked with a European transfer for the past two years, and finally materialized. The duopoly of Messi and Ronaldo was set to have a new challenger. The stage was set, the Prince had set foot in Europe.
His first season in Spain was more of an adapting phase, but he did show why Barcelona had signed him the first place. His dribbles dazzled, his shooting was great, but Lionel Messi was still the heart of the team, and certain improvements were needed. Post-season, he was the talisman of the Brazil National team, and many had hoped he would lead the team to its first World Cup on home soil, but his campaign was cut short owing to a fractured vertebra in the Quarter-Final against Colombia.
Neymar’s second season brought about a lot of changes; Luis Enrique had taken over as manager and Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez had joined from Liverpool. The “MSN” trio ended with 122 goals that season, with Neymar scoring 39, and 10 in the UEFA Champions League, as Barcelona won a second treble in six years. He was also the first player apart from Messi and Ronaldo to top the UCL scoring charts since Kaká in 2006–07. He was one of the best players in the world, and it reflected as he placed 3rd in the Ballon D’Or standings that year. He followed the treble up with a Liga-Copa double, as the MSN scored 131 goals that season.
With all that success, came the ego. Sure, Neymar was incredibly talented, but he was still the third-best in the world. Barcelona’s success, though collective, was Lionel Messi’s success at the end of the day. The Argentinian was at the time arguably the world’s best player (This point is not arguable anymore!), and come what may, Neymar was still playing in his shadow. It’s impossible to dethrone the world’s best when every goal/assist you score contributes to his success. He would never win the Ballon D’Or as long as he played with Messi (maybe?). And he had to find a new club where he was the superstar. A team that revolved around him as Barcelona was built around Messi. The MSN was thriving and ripping oppositions apart, and it didn’t make sense to break that up though, did it?
The breakpoint of Neymar’s ambitions came in the Round of 16 of the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League, against Paris Saint-Germain. The French outfit had decimated Barcelona 4–0 in Paris, and three weeks later, they travelled to Catalonia for the return leg. Luis Enrique had famously said “If they can score 4, we can score 6” Such was the confidence the boss had in the MSN attacking trident. And he was right, Barcelona pulled off the biggest comeback in Champions League history to win 6–1 in the return leg. Neymar was the architect of that comeback, with 2 goals and the world-famous assist to Sergi Roberto in the space of 7 minutes. That was the night Neymar came closest to being considered Messi’s equal. The fans saw that they had not one, but two of the world’s best. The stage was set again, this time for Neymar to share, and maybe take the crown from Messi and Ronaldo, and become one of the greatest ever Barcelona, and the world had ever seen.
But Neymar failed to see the bigger picture. He still wanted to step out of Messi’s shadow, and when PSG came calling, he took the opportunity. Culers felt betrayed, and his relationship with the club’s supporters turned sour. So far in fact, that the supporters burned shirts with Neymar’s name on them. Nobody had thought he would leave. Rumors had been flying around that PSG were planning to his (massive) release clause, but there were conflicting reports whether he would actually leave.
From Neymar’s point of view, he was not going to become the best player in the world if he was not even the best player at Barcelona. And for the next four years, that was going to be the case. He came to the realisation that if he is to become regarded as the globe’s №1 player, he would have to move on. One of the other reasons Neymar became so intrigued by a switch to PSG was the Brazilian bond that already existed at the club. Thiago Silva, Marquinhos and Dani Alves were already in Paris, and when chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi saw the slightest opportunity, PSG pounced.
Backed by oil money, PSG had all the resources they needed to land the superstar. PSG triggered his whopping 222 Million release clause, and offered him a seven-figure signing bonus along with weekly wages over 500K. They had to show they were serious about their (so-called) project, by signing the hottest prospect in the world (Neymar, not Mbappe). And within a week after Barcelona’s American preseason tour, their second-best player was at Parc de Princes.
Understandably, Barcelona tried to convince him to stay, and when they couldn’t do that, they tried to drag out the deal. After all, they had to show supporters this superstar was not allowed to leave without a fight. And they had to start making moves of their own to replace him. (They made really terrible moves, but that’s a story for another day).
Neymar’s arrival was supposed to elevate PSG to stratospheric levels, competing with the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and the rest of Europe’s elite. But 6 years down the line, Neymar is no longer in Paris, and PSG are still winless in the Champions League. His time in Paris was pretty injury-hit, yet he did have his moments. In his first season, he racked up 28 goals in 30 games, but was injured for most of the second half of the season, yet ended up winning Ligue 1 Player of the Year. Similar success followed in the next season, and the one after that, and yet again. Winning the French League was never a problem, and never the target either.
Despite Neymar’s individual success and impressive stats during his tenure at PSG, the overarching goal of securing the UEFA Champions League title remained elusive. The team’s Champions League campaign reached a crescendo in the pandemic-disrupted 2019–2020 season when they made it to the final but fell short against Bayern Munich. The near miss added to the frustration of both Neymar and the club’s passionate fanbase, who had hoped his arrival would catalyze PSG’s ascent to European glory. Neymar’s injury woes, particularly in crucial moments of the Champions League knockout stages, were a recurrent theme, casting a shadow over the team’s aspirations.
While PSG continued to dominate domestically, clinching Ligue 1 titles, the failure to conquer Europe’s premier club competition became a defining narrative. Neymar’s departure from PSG after six years to Al-Hilal marked the end of an era, leaving fans reflecting on what could have been. His time in Paris showcased moments of brilliance and individual accolades, but the ultimate objective of bringing the Champions League trophy to the French capital remained unfulfilled, leaving a sense of unfinished business for both Neymar and the club.
Neymar’s career stands as a compelling tale of what could’ve been. Bursting onto the scene as a prodigious talent, the Brazilian forward’s move to PSG was accompanied by lofty expectations of conquering Europe and etching his name alongside the footballing elite. However, despite moments of brilliance and individual success, his time in Paris is marked by the haunting specter of unfulfilled potential. Injuries, near misses in the Champions League, and the persistent yearning for the crown of European glory underscore the narrative of what could have transpired had circumstances aligned differently.
