It is still an ongoing debate on who is the GOAT between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but Unai Emery is convinced the two football greats have a replacement already. The Spaniard is voting for Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar as the best man to fill the void when Messi and Ronaldo exit.
Emery was in charge of PSG when Neymar made the controversial jump from Barcelona in 2017 and the former manager shared that he had "a magnificent working experience," with the Brazilian striker. The switch during that year powered PSG to the Ligue 1 title and for Neymar, he continued on his winning ways.
Although he was hobbled by injury issues in the past years, the South American still managed to appear in 80 PSG matches and scored 69 goals. His effort so far resulted in three consecutive domestic triumphs for PSG, and Emery is undoubtedly impressed.
"Neymar has football inside, but also the faculties and the conditions to execute it. I think he is facing the opportunity to take over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to be the best player in the world, and he has time to do it," Metro reported the former Arsenal boss as saying.
According to Emery: "I learned so much watching his responses in each training and in games ... I had a magnificent year with him."
Per The Daily Mail, it was Emery who brought Neymar to the French capital three years ago. Prior to the striker's signing, PSG lost to Monaco in the Ligue 1 title match but Neymar's arrival allowed the French giants to regain the crown and flex their dominance in the domestic league.
However, Neymar is still trying to replicate his incredible run with Barcelona. With the Catalans, the Brazilian also won domestic titles plus the Champions League crown. Notably, the latter remains elusive for Neymar's ongoing spell at Parc des Princes.
The same report from the Mail also noted that in terms of personal honors, it's still a long way to go for the PSG star as he has yet to win the Ballon d'Or.
Already, Ronaldo boasts of five Ballon honors playing for Real Madrid and Manchester United, and will likely take home another as he continues to showcase undiminished football skills now that he is part of Juventus.
Messi now counts six Ballon wins and the Barcelona captain is not seen to stop with his juggernaut ways anytime soon. It is not remote for the Argentine superstar to win another as he is only 32 and is expected to reap more titles and honors in the few years to come.
So it will be tons of catching up for Neymar, who is long-rumored to make a comeback to Barcelona this summer.
