Neil Humphreys: No escaping Lionel Messi's shadow
Griezmann and Neymar's relative youth no guarantee of shaking off ageing Argentinian's greatness
Footballers find their answers on the pitch.
Neymar should look for his on the green grass of Wimbledon.
The greatest just won't quit when they're ahead.
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are all in their 30s, but the young guns couldn't live with them. Tennis can't live without them.
And Barcelona can't live without Lionel Messi.
As tennis' old guard dominate like the ghosts of Grand Slams past, Messi is proving similarly stubborn, chipping away at the younger egos of Neymar and Antoine Griezmann.
Griezmann has finally joined Barcelona.
Neymar intends to do likewise, waving at his old club like a lovesick teenager pining for the prom queen that got away.
Both men crave the Nou Camp spotlight but remain wary of Messi's shadow.
Publicly, they'll stress their eagerness to join him. Privately, they'll hope to replace him.
PARADOX
Neymar learnt the paradox of playing with Messi the first time around at Barcelona.
While they were together, the Brazilian could never be the leading man.
But after two inconsistent years at Paris Saint-Germain, he now realises that to be the greatest, he has got to play with the greatest.
It's an irony that was initially lost on Neymar, but he is more respectful of his body clock now.
If he is lucky, he has three to five years of peak football ahead of him.
Messi does not.
A return to Barcelona might instigate a period of transition followed by a coronation. The Catalans would get a new king.
But sporting abdications are proving elusive as advancements in health and nutrition turn elite sports into stirring remakes of Benjamin Button.
Cristiano Ronaldo captained Portugal to an international trophy at 34.
Tiger Woods defied chiropractors everywhere to win the US Masters at 43.
The men's finalists at Wimbledon had a combined age of almost 70.
And Messi had his finest half an hour for Argentina in recent memory, before he was unfairly sent off in the Copa America third-place play-off.
Retirement is out. Old is new.
And Messi remains stubbornly omnipresent. He's not going anywhere.
Neymar acknowledged his former teammate's durability when he left Barcelona.
Now he wants a reunion, in the hope that even the most elegant of old grandfather clocks wind down eventually.
Griezmann is banking on it.
The Frenchman has made no secret of his Messi apprehension. He discussed the issue on a documentary last year.
THE DECISION
Rather melodramatically called The Decision, it chronicled the Frenchman's dilemma.
Should he stay at Atletico Madrid or join Barcelona?
Of course, he stayed for one more season and released the documentary, presumably to win back sceptical Atletico supporters.
But he used Messi as a reason for not joining Barcelona. Could he really replace the irreplaceable? What if he fell short? His insecurity was understandable.
Elite athletes do not aspire to reach their professional pinnacle only to stand in the shadow of another. Just ask Neymar.
He had to leave Barcelona and wait his turn.
He's still waiting, knowing that time remains on his side.
He's five years younger than Messi. More importantly, he's a year younger than Griezmann.
The Frenchman will be 29 next season and competing, primarily, for the left-side of Barcelona's attack. That's his favoured position.
That's also Messi's favoured position. Only Messi gets what he wants.
Neymar's attempts to woo Barcelona have triggered discussion of how the Catalans could conceivably fit the Brazilian, Messi, Griezmann and Luis Suarez into the side (and Philippe Coutinho if he hangs around).
Suarez looks the obvious fall guy. But the 32-year-old offers a physical versatility. Four into three doesn't go, but he's not necessarily the odd one out.
Two left-sided mavericks do not fit into a single position.
Accommodating the similar attributes of Messi and Griezmann will be the key tactical conundrum.
Clearly, Griezmann is playing the numbers game. He's got four years on Messi.
The Frenchman has to prevail, definitely, maybe.
Neymar is following a similar line of reasoning, one that was followed by 125 other male tennis players at Wimbledon. Old men always fall in the end.
But reasoning is based on logic, and the greatest athletes are in the illogical business.
Nadal, Federer, Djokovic reached Wimbledon's semi-finals with a combined age of 102.
They didn't go gently and nor will Messi. His shadow endures.
Griezmann cost 120 million euros (S$183.3m) and Neymar will arguably cost even more.
But if the pair join forces at the Nou Camp, they'll have to do what every other elite footballer has done at Messi's Barcelona.
Get in line.
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