Neymar's Stock Rises After Barcelona's Lifeless Performance Against Getafe

Given the way Neymar has been playing lately, it wouldn't be a stretch of the imagination to say that Barcelona would have beaten Getafe instead of playing out a tired, goalless draw had he not missed the match with an injured ankle.

The blow came on Friday afternoon, when Barcelona announced their squad for the game and that Neymar was going to miss it simultaneously.

In theory, even without Neymar, Barcelona should be winning games like these. If the referee had spotted a handball by Juan Valera and awarded Luis Enrique's side a penalty in the first half, Barcelona probably would have strolled to an easy victory.

Getafe battened down the hatches and made themselves difficult for Barcelona to beat. Lionel Messi was on the fringes of the game, only producing glimpses of his magic from two set pieces.

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The first cracked against the crossbar while the second was kept out by the scrambling Vicente Guaita at the base of his left-hand post.

Luis Suarez was working harder than Messi but to little effect. The Uruguayan moved down the left and created a great chance for Pedro in the first half, skipping past his man and whipping a ball across the box, which the Spaniard couldn't quite reach.

It was Pedro who replaced Neymar in the front line, and he had a fruitless afternoon. The forward had come from the bench against Espanyol last weekend, scoring and setting up Messi for his hat-trick.

He followed that up with a midfield role on the right flank against Paris Saint-Germain, working hard and helping his team win a tricky Champions League clash.

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But with Barcelona needing inspiration against Getafe at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez, he could not provide it. Neither could youngster Munir El Haddadi, summoned from the bench to replace the Canary Islander.

What Neymar has is something special, which makes him extremely difficult for defences to handle. His speed, powerful dribbling and willingness to take on his man gives Barcelona a powerful weapon.

He's become more potent in front of goal, too, netting 14 goals in 18 games for Barcelona in all competitions.

Last season, he only found the net 13 times in 37 matches for the club, but this year, he's truly become the player that Barcelona paid so much money for in May 2013.

Barcelona won't need him at Camp Nou on Tuesday night when they play the second leg of their Copa del Rey tie against Huesca, in which they already have a 4-0 lead.

Instead, he can rest and recover and regain his place in the team for their last game of 2014, which is against Cordoba at Camp Nou on December 20.

Arguably, Neymar is now the most reliable force in the team. Messi, of course, is the best player, but he just doesn't seem to get involved in some matches.

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Enrique has to work on his tactics, his formation and how to transition the ball from the back to the front. The one thing it seems he can rely on is Neymar.

It was the Brazilian who fired Barcelona into the lead against PSG in quite spectacular fashion on Wednesday. His exquisite long-range strike flew past Salvatore Sirigu and nestled in the bottom-right corner.

A moment of magic like that was what Barcelona needed against Getafe. It was not forthcoming.