Brazil vs. Argentina: Rating Neymar's Performance

Forget all the goals, all the glory and all the fans. Forget being a millionaire at age 19 in the land, playing the game you love in the country of your birth.

It's not easy being Neymar.

Brazil and Argentina played to a scoreless draw Wednesday night on a dreary night in Cordoba, Argentina, and if world soccer fans directed their disappointment at any particular player, it was probably Neymar.

Neymar is the teen Santos playmaker that everyone—and I mean everyone—wants to see become the next big thing. He dribbles, he shoots, he scores and he dazzles fans. And like I said, he's only 19 years old.

But despite that young age, there are already expectations, often wholly unrealistic.

Everybody expects Neymar to be the man. Everybody expects him to take over matches while delivering positively enthralling displays of personal skill.

Wednesday night, in a match populated only with players from South American clubs, Neymar did a little of that. But he didn't do it all, and Brazil mustered a draw in what turned out to be a dour match until the final 15 minutes, when some semblance of life came afoot.

Hold off on the criticism for a quick minute, however. It's going to take some time to do all the things we all want him to do.

There were positive signs, though.

Early in the match, he created space down the right flank with speed and showed strength to not fall down under a challenge.

A few minutes later he dazzled by pulling down a long pass, turning on a dime, burning a couple of defenders and crossing to Damiao for what should have been the opening goal.

But Neymar did struggle to impose himself on the game consistently. And that's a sign that he's not quite ready to make the leap. World-class players put their stamp on every aspect of a game, and while Neymar can be brilliant at times, sustaining it is another issue.

If or when he can do that, we'll be talking about how much the next Brazilian superstar can do.