NEYMAR'S MOVE TO BARCELONA : A GIFT TO HIS CAREER

              Already he has been termed as one of the best players in this generation by many lovers of the game. Nothing is unheard about him that is yet to be heard. Not his dribbling skills, fighting spirit, goalscoring ability, absolutely everything a best player can have. But one thing, if not so, pull him back from Messi's level and draws him near to players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Baloteli,name them. His discipline.



         
      Discipline does no only mean respecting other people's ideas and advises not even respecting the fans alone but also entails being fair to your opponents and winning games fairly. In many ocassions,Neymar has received criticisms for his diving and engaging into abuses with the opponent player(s). In the ongoing confederetions cup especially the tie between Brazil and Uruguay, Neymar was involved in a couple of words exchange with uruguay players. He was also criticized of diving too much in certain ocassions during the match, and these brought some arguments in one way or another thus altering the game formations of both teams.

         This aside, the Italians also complained about Neymar's acts of diving, which made him win a free-kick and score from it their second goal in a match they defeated the Italians 4-2. There are many other incidences that occurred in their Brazilian league, but the worry is, will he survive with the Spanish giants?

       Indeed, his move to the Gatalans is to me the best for his career, having in mind the values FC Barcelona nurture its players to uphold. In FC Barcelona, discipline is highly cherished and Neymar will have no otherwise but bow to it.  A player like Mascherano was one of the indisciplined players in the game, but his period with the club has helped him improve his behaviours. Alexis Sanches was also known for throwing himself  without any impact made from the opponents, and later came to detatch from this act.

   Therefore, with the presence of worldly respected players like Messi, Iniesta and Xavi all around him, Neymar will surely shift from his behaviours as compared to if he had Pepe, Ramos,Ronaldo and Marcelo all around him. Let us hope he changes from these criticisms and uphold his prestige. 

A WELL DESERVED VICTORY

                  A WELL DESERVED VICTORY                                  

             

The Spanish u21 football team yesterday took down their final opponents Italy,in the final that saw six goals recorded.The Spanish team led by their number 10 captain, Thiago Alcantara won by four goals against two.Spanish goals came from their talented 'wizard' Thiago's first half hattrick(8',31',38'p) and Isco's(66'p) second half penalty,while the Italians got their consolation from goals by Immobile(10') and Liverpool striker Borini(58').
Before the tournament began,many had predicted a victory to the Spanish since most of their players had played in top league matches and gained experience.Here are a sample reasons why their victory was well deserved.
                   
       1. Their super captain
If there is an award-winning decision made by the Spanish coach  Julen Lopetegui before the tournament began was making the FC Barcelona midfielder the captain of his team.Thiago Alcantara has played many matches for the FC Barcelona first team and has been likened to world's best midfielders, Xavi and Iniesta. There is no doubt that very soon,ypossibly next season he will take over form the tiring Xavi.Thiago has also been linked with moves to Machester United,Manchester City,Arsenal,Bayern Munich among others.The way he controls the ball,dribbles and passes has proven his reliability in any squad included,and this is what the u21 side needed from him.
  
    2. Experienced defenders and goalkeeper.
This team enjoyed the services of defenders who had tasted the top competitions. Center-back, Marc Batra and right-back Montoya,both playing for FC Barcelona have played the champions league and won la liga,thus gaining more experience.Although Batra was in the losing team against Bayern,his perfomance in the match should not be undermined considering the experienced opponents he faced with his young age.Sociedad's Matinez and Atletico's Koke also played a vital role as well as Manchester United goalkeeper,De Gea who had won the premier league title.This combination looked strong and were only scored two goals in the tournament which came in the finals by the Italians.

  3. Reliable striking force
The Spanish u21 lacked the fever of their seniors who has been witnessing striker-drought and forcing midfielders like Fabregas to a false 9 role.Morata,the Real Madrid striker played his role as a striker and  won the tournament's golden boot with four goals.His combination with Isco,another key player in the squad gave the team more strength in the attack allowing midfielders to stick on their role.

After the victory,more focus is laid on the future of these players as top clubs have already shown interest in sighning this crop of Spanish talent as their future seem bright.