Neymar Thrashes Cristiano Ronaldo in Real Madrid Fan Vote
Neymar has convincingly beaten Cristiano Ronaldo in a Real Madrid fan poll over which player supporters would rather have at the Bernabeu.
According to Cadena Ser's Jesus Gallego (via Josep Capdevila of Sport), 80 per cent of Los Blancos fans would swap out "Ronaldo for Neymar as of today."
The result is a damning indictment of how Real fans view their star player and an indication of the ever-rising profile of the 24-year-old Neymar.
While Ronaldo, 31, has still been prolific in front of goal this season—he has netted 21 La Liga goals in 2015-16, per WhoScored.com—the perception is on the rise that his impact has lessened.
His goals have come in gluts against smaller sides, while he has failed to find the net in Real's major matches against the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Villarreal, Valencia, Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain.
Furthermore, his impact in away games has been poor, per Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe:
Neymar, on the other hand, has only become more influential in the current season, netting 17 times and providing nine assists in 20 La Liga appearances while carrying the team—along with Luis Suarez—in Lionel Messi's injury-inflicted absence at the end of 2015, per WhoScored.com.
For the first time this year, Neymar finished on the podium for the Ballon d'Or, although he was some way behind Ronaldo in the voting, per Bleacher Report UK:
"#BallondOr results breakdown:#Messi - 41.33%#Cristiano - 27.76%#Neymar - 7.86% pic.twitter.com/1USr5Zls3R
— Bleacher Report UK (@br_uk) January 11, 2016"
However, it seems highly likely that the Brazil captain will be in contention for the prestigious award in the years to come, while Ronaldo may be in decline.
Certainly, the result of the Real fan vote indicates that Madridistas would prefer an ever-improving Neymar at their club rather than a potentially declining Ronaldo, despite the huge contribution the Portuguese continues to make to the Bernabeu club, per Sky Sports Statto:
While Real fans will never likely see Neymar play for their club given the intense rivalry between Los Blancos and Barca, it is seemingly evident that their faith in Ronaldo is waning.
Per Matt Law in the Telegraph, the former Manchester United man continues to be linked with a move away from the Bernabeu in the summer. And he may yet be pushed closer to the exit door if he feels he is no longer appreciated.
