A pair of statements which are both true, and not at all mutually exclusive, if you allow logic and balance to prevail: 1) Neymar and his friends at Paris Saint-Germain are quite good at the soccer; 2) they aren’t challenged enough in Ligue 1.
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Of course, they’ll be challenged plenty during the latter stages of the Champions League (they drew Real Madrid in the round of 16), but on a weekly basis, the level of competition in their domestic league isn’t of a high standard to indicate just how good they are. That’s the new debate with regard to PSG — it’s no longer, “Are they good? Maybe they’re just a big fish in a small pond.”
On Wednesday, led by Neymar, the most expensive transfer signing of all-time, Unai Emery’s side thrashed 10th-place Dijon to the tune of 8-0. As mentioned, Neymar did slightly more than just pull his own weight — four goals to go with a pair of assists; he lent a direct hand in six of the eight goals.
🎩🎩🎩 @neymarjr works a bit magic to complete his hat-trick! @PSG_English now lead 6-0. #PSGDFCO pic.twitter.com/DYxJiJZFN4
— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
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Even the statistical whizzes at Opta appear somewhat stumped by such an abundance of goals.
6 - @neymarjr is the 1st player involved in 6 goals in a single Ligue 1 game since Opta started to collect the data for Ligue 1 in 2006/07 (4 goals, 2 assists). Unreal. @PSG_English pic.twitter.com/XdmmCZGMrH
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) January 17, 2018
Anytime the keepers of stats toss out a “since we started collecting data,” be proud of your achievement. Be very, very proud.
GOOOOAAAL: A very casual @neymarjr smoothly deposits a free kick into the back of the net! @PSG_English lead @DFCO_Officiel 4-0 in the first half. #PSGDFCO pic.twitter.com/eh1IfrnGUh
— beIN SPORTS USA (@beINSPORTSUSA) January 17, 2018
