More likely than not, five years from now, in 2020, Neymar da Silva Santos Junior will be the best player in the world. Lionel Messi has a few years left in his prime, but when the Argentine wizard is 33, and Neymar is as old as Messi is today, 28, it’s hard to see Messi as still the world’s best. With the other leading candidate for world’s greatest footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, having already turned 30, the dawn of the next decade looks to be Neymar’s to seize.
Or fumble.
Copa Blunder
Highly coveted young prospects often stumble and fall before their day in the sun comes around, but Neymar has moved on from Brazilian Wunderkind to legitimate global superstar—and for good reason. His skill on the ball is remarkable; his movement off it is intelligent and decisive; his finishing is definitively world class. At only 23 years old, and with less than 70 international caps, Neymar has already broken into the top five all time goalscorers for Brazil with 44. Pele’s mark of 95 goals will stand for a few more years, but by the time Neymar hangs up his boots, the Barcelona striker will almost certainly have eclipsed the century mark for his country, and claimed the honor of top goalscorer in one of the world’s greatest footballing nations.
Yet for all that his goalscoring prowess adds to the Brazilian team, it was Neymar’s immaturity that proved instrumental in their undoing at this year’s Copa America. Following Brazil’s 1-0 loss against Colombia in the group stage, Neymar kicked the ball at an opposing player. Jeison Murillo, a Colombian defender who is also 23, ran up to Neymar, put his hand on the Brazilians shoulder, and said something to the Brazilian in response. Murillo might have had reason to be upset, but his manner seemed cordial; however, whatever it was he imparted to Neymar, the talismanic forward was unimpressed, as he gave Murillo a slight head butt in response.
Both the kicking of the ball, and the head butting of an opponent, combined to earn Neymar a four match ban, meaning that, even if Brazil reached the final, Neymar would have no part in it. Dunga, Brazil’s manager, was quick to leap to the defense of his young starlet, blaming the referee, and saying “The fight at the end was his fault.” Although some would argue that it is a manager’s duty to defend his players, and while games poorly refereed do have a greater chance of boiling over into conflict, I don’t buy it. If Neymar wants to find someone to blame for his suspension, he need only find his way to the bathroom mirror.
Xavi’s Advice
The Brazilian manager may have been quick to exonerate his player, but Neymar’s former Barcelona teammate, Xavi Hernandez, has been less eager to find a scapegoat for Neymar’s behavior. Following a minor altercation during Barcelona’s Champions League victory parade—and perhaps more willing to speak freely now that he is set to depart Camp Nou for Al Sadd—Xavi spoke on the record about Neymar’s (im)maturity. “He should seriously think about how he acts,” said the Spanish midfielder. Xavi honored Neymar as “an extraordinary guy, a hard worker and humble,” but admitted that the Brazilian’s actions often seem to display “a lack of respect” for others on the pitch.
Neymar is no villain (well, unless you consider a propensity for flopping villainous), but he would do well to listen to the former Barcelona captain. Fortunately for Neymar, at the Camp Nou in Barcelona, he has a ready-made role model at his side in Lionel Messi. Messi may be in danger of missing out on the title of “The Greatest of All Time” should he fail to help Argentina to a World Cup victory in 2018, but the Argentine has been in the spotlight as world’s best for several years now, and has maintained remarkable composure and grace amid all the pressure.
Neymar’s Mentors: A Lesson in Contrast
Fellow Barcelona and Argentina teammate Javier Mascherano recently praised his nation’s captain. “It’s not easy, being the best at what he does but still having the humility and desire to be close to those around him,” Mascherano said of Messi. “Usually the best in any area see things differently but in this case Leo is still an ordinary person… I have great respect for Messi the person and player.” With the mantle—or perhaps gauntlet—of world’s greatest likely to be passed from Messi to Neymar in the coming years, the young Brazilian would doubtless benefit from a pious imatatio Messi, as few superstars can claim the degree of respect Messi’s combination of skill and humility have earned him.
But as with many metaphors of piety, there is a devil in the mix. That’s perhaps a harsh way to describe Luis Suarez—he is, after all, a human being, not a satanic imp—but his behavior has nonetheless provided a stark counterexample to Messi’s gracious humility. That Suarez has a checkered history on the pitch is clear, but that is not the root of the problem. Luis Suarez may have, as occasion has demanded, postured remorsefully, but the truth is the Uruguayan sensation has shown little humility or contrition.
Suarez recently commented on his lengthy ban for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini during the 2014 World Cup, calling on FIFA to apologize to him. “In my view,” Suarez claimed, “FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee know my ban was excessive and at some point I’d love them to apologise and admit it was the wrong punishment, just as I admitted when I was wrong.” This is the very definition of double-talk. ‘Sure, I let myself and my country down when I bit an opposing player during one of the biggest games of my life, and yeah, it may have been the third time I’d done it in a competitive match, establishing the fact that I had not learned from previous, lesser punishments, but none of that changes the fact that I’m the real victim here.’ Indeed, Suarez did apologize, but this kind of self-righteous sense of being wronged by FIFA’s punishment only goes to show that his apology lacked any real remorse.
Luis Suarez is one of the greatest footballers in the world, and playing alongside Messi and Neymar, an integral part of the most dangerous attacking force in world football. But as time goes on, it has become more and more clear that, anywhere but on the pitch, he is not a role model to be emulated. Should Neymar endeavor to cultivate a close relationship, even friendship with his Uruguayan teammate? Absolutely. In terms of both on-the-pitch and locker room chemistry, he would be letting himself, his teammates, and their fans down if he did not. But not all friends are mentors. If Neymar is truly to be the world’s greatest, if he is to fulfill his potential and avoid needlessly harming his teams through suspension and distraction, he must look to Messi, not Suarez, as his exemplar.