My thoughts on the Neymar Situation

He is easily one of the most recognisable players in football. At age 20, he has already won the South American player of the year for 2011 and has even been nominated for the Ballon d'Or. One would logically expect that a player of his calibre would be plying his trade at the best clubs in the world. Is he at Barcelona? Is he at Real Madrid? How about Bayern Munich? Well the truth is, the player who has been rated the 'next Leo Messi' plays at Santos; a good club in Brazil but not at the world stage.

Its not that Neymar has not been linked with a move to Europe's best. Infact I am not sure which major European club he has not been linked with (maybe Arsenal). Despite all the interest though, Neymar has remained in Brazil. There are a number of factors responsible the most notable of which is Pele. I recall reading several interviews from Brazil's football icon asking Neymar to turn down the lucrative offers from Europe and instead stay at Santos. Initially it made sense. A young player should first build his name before making one of them big money moves. Pele was probably also concerned about Neymar's maturity at that time and felt he needed more games before he could make a mark on European football. But now, I feel his comments are quite ridiculous. Neymar is now 20 and that is age when gifted players start performing on the big stage. Having scored 117 goals for santos and 25 for the Brazilian national team, it's safe to say that Neymar is ready for a bigger challenge. Preventing a move now would only impede his development.

Having said that though, Neymar should make sure he transfers to a club where he will get enough game time. Many bright prospects move to a big club but finally end up glued to the substitutes bench.I feel he should consider a club that has a strong attacking mentality but do not have many players in attacking positions.

Neymar's got the talent, he has got the publicity and he has got the flair to be one of the best. But to truly reach his potential, he needs a bigger challenge; a challenge that can only be found in Europe. If Neymar plays his cards right, we could witness the birth of another Brazilian footballing great.

What's all the fuss about Giroud?

Olivier Giroud. Dubbed the 'New Chamakh' by the English press though in my mind, this is far from the truth.   I admit Giroud has missed chances that even Chamakh would have taken (no offense to Chamakh) but as player, there is no comparison. Giroud has this ability to unnerve defences. His tall frame and physicality is enough to brush most of the Premier League defenders out of his way. When people talk about his goal scoring drought, what they are forgetting is the quality that Giroud brings to Arsenal. He has a fantastic strike, a good presence in the box and yes of course he can set up goals. When asked on his lack of goals by Yahoo, Giroud replied with a smile,"I had an assist tonight."

It's true, Giroud has as many assists as the flamboyant Santi Cazorla. This is a trait that cannot and should not be looked over. Arsenal have always had creative strikers and Giroud certainly continues the tradition.

Another factor that everyone is missing is the amount of time Giroud is on the field. On an average, he gets about 15 minutes in a game as a substitute. Considering this, the fact that he has a goal and three assists at this stage of the season is remarkable.

The important thing that when Giroud is on the pitch, you know he is on the pitch. Whether he is setting up goals or missing them, at least you can feel his presence. This 'presence' is something that Chamakh lacks and during games he plays, I feel Arsenal only have ten men. As Giroud himself said during an interview,"The goals are coming soon."