This week, Neymar came out and said what every Barca fan is thinking: Messi is the greatest footballer currently playing the game, better even than La Liga scoring leader and Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo.
It's only a week since Barcelona's 5-0 routing of La Liga rivals Levante, in which teammates Neymar and Messi stole the show with a combined 4 goals (with Suarez coming off the bench to finish the job).
After that inspiring performance, in which Messi scored his 23rd hat trick, Neymar practically gushed about his relationship with Messi. Speaking to French TV outlet Canal+, Neymar said, "For me it is an honour to play alongside Messi, Luis Suarez and Pedro. Messi is the best friend I have, both at Barca and away from the football pitch."
It would seem that a warm relationship off the pitch is very good indeed for business on the pitch. The Barca duo are on fire at the moment, with a combined 43 goals and 17 assists so far this season - 17 of these goals coming in the last six La Liga matches that Barcelona has played, all of which have been victories.
Brothers in arms, Messi and Neymar. (Photo: @njrstats | Twitter)
Heading into this weekend's match against Malaga - which, if Barcelona can hold on, will extend their win streak to 12 - Neymar was vocal again about his best friend and teammate. Visiting a Formula One testing circuit in Catalunya on Friday, Neymar had this to say about Messi:
"Messi's the greatest footballer I've ever watched play...Along with Ronaldo, he is the best in the world, but Leo is my friend and - for me - he is the better of the two."
While it's not all that surprising that Neymar would tout Messi as better than Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, it does add fuel to the fire that is the heated rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid this season. Currently, Madrid stands atop the league table by a very narrow margin. Which makes this weekend's match-ups - Barcelona vs. Malaga (in which, at the time of this writing, Barcelona trails 0-1 at the 89') and Real Madrid vs. Elche - all the more interesting.