DUBAI // Brazil World Cup winner Ronaldinho says compatriot Neymar is already on a par with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, and that it is “only a matter of time” before he breaks their stranglehold on the Fifa Ballon d’Or.
The Barcelona forward has become one of the leading players in world football, playing an integral role in the Spanish club’s bid this season for both the Primera Liga and the Uefa Champions League.
Neymar offered further evidence of his talent in last week’s incredible turnaround in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 clash with Paris Saint-Germain, scoring twice from the 88th minute before assisting Sergi Roberto for the winner. Barcelona triumphed 6-1 at the Camp Nou to take the tie 6-5 on aggregate, in what many consider to be one of the greatest comebacks in football history.
__________________________________
More football
■ Richard Jolly: Leicester again find themselves rubbing shoulders with giants
■ Monaco v Manchester City: Attack the best form of defence
■ Atletico v Leverkusen: Yannick Ferreira Carrasco growing in stature
__________________________________
It was yet another example of why Neymar, 25, a Brazil international who joined Barcelona from Santos in 2013, is now recognised as one of the best players in the game. At Barcelona, he has formed a potent attacking triumvirate alongside Messi and Luis Suarez to help the club to the domestic treble last season, while he has been tipped as the man to eventually oust Messi and Real Madrid’s Ronaldo from their Ballon d’Or perch. In the past nine years, the two have won the award recognising the world’s best player five times and four times, respectively.
However, Ronaldinho predicts that Neymar will soon claim the crown. The former Barcelona playmaker, who served the Catalan side with distinction from 2003 to 2008, was twice voted World Player of the Year, in 2004 and 2005.
Speaking in Dubai on Wednesday as partners Duplays announced an expansion to his football academy through to Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, Ronaldinho said: “Neymar and I are good friends. He is Brazil’s greatest idol today and is already at the same level as those guys, of Ronaldo, of Messi.
“And we really hope that one day he can get the Ballon d’Or and continue his success. But no, he’s already among the top and it’s just a matter of time.”
During his five years at Barcelona, Ronaldinho won the Primera Liga twice and the Champions League once. Asked if he thought the current team are as good as his Barcelona side, the 2002 World Cup winner said: “I never liked comparisons. We were a great team, great players, great individuals, and today’s team is also a great team with great players and great individuals. My team was successful, winning a lot of trophies, and today’s Barcelona is the same – they are very, very successful. Again, I don’t like comparisons. I just wish them the best and hope it continues.”
Ronaldinho did say, though, that he enjoyed Barcelona’s enthralling victory against PSG, another of his former clubs. The Brazilian moved to the French capital in 2001, before signing for Barcelona two years later in a deal reportedly worth €30 million (Dh117m).
“It was a privilege to play for both clubs,” he said. “I cannot say if it was the biggest comeback in football, but it was the most memorable. It was a special one and a different one. It was historical.”
jmcauley@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE
Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TheNationalSport
