Lionel Messi has been outstanding for ages, but it’s clear that Barcelona have never been more reliant on him than they are now.
The great sides of ten years ago always felt like outstanding teams who just happened to have an exceptional talent, while now it’s really just Messi and a supporting cast.
He’s getting older and Barca will need to find a solution soon, so it will be interesting to see which road they go down. They could try to strengthen the whole squad and play as a team, or they could try and find another megastar.
READ MORE: Barcelona consider transfer swoop for €60m-rated Bayern Munich star as Neymar alternative
A report from goal.com has looked at some comments from Mazinho, and it’s clear he thinks they need to bring Neymar back.
Mazinho is a World Cup winner and father of former Barca stars Thiago and Rafinha so he knows what it takes to make it at the top level, and Neymar is already well known in Spain after his time at the Camp Nou.
He said: “He is Messi’s natural replacement. There is no other to replace Messi. Perhaps leaving Barcelona was a mistake for the Brazilian but, if there’s any chance of getting him back for less than the €222m Barca paid for him, the club should seize the opportunity.”
“At 28, he still has a lot of football to play. He would be a great signing for Barca as they would be getting someone who knows the club and who has the personality to make the difference in games.”
“He wouldn’t be daunted by sharing the pitch with Lionel Messi and the Argentinian would enjoy having him back on the team.”
It could also give Neymar the chance to finally become the main star in a team as he’s been overshadowed by Messi in the past and Kylian Mbappe is PSG’s main man just now, so it could work out perfectly for him.
It’s hard to tell how accurate that €222m figure is, but it would certainly take a sizeable investment to bring him back to Barcelona.