Form vs Substance: Will Neymar perform better at Al Hilal than at PSG?

By Saoud Moussa Baccus

Neymar at FIFA Friendly Match Austria vs. Brazil on 10 June 2018
in Ernst-Happel-Stadium, Vienna. Picture by Granada, Wikimedia Commons.
(Downloaded: 27 August 2023)

As a young University of Toronto student, I was constantly reminded of the importance
of distinguishing between form and substance. It took me a while to truly understand its
meaning. Eventually I did and to this day it is an ever-present element in any thought
analysis my mind processes.

Names do not build a league, names build the brand.

When I heard about Neymar Júnior leaving the French capital to join Al Hilal and link up with
many other football superstars who once plied their trade in Europe, I quickly looked for
details of his contract. For, he was not just another player. He was the one player Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) felt they needed to win the UEFA Champions League and without dilly-dallying paid the
222m euros transfer fees Barcelona demanded. Neymar did not fulfill his assignment.
Now, Al Hilal reportedly paid PSG €100m to acquire his services. He signed a two-year
contract that would pay him a reported $100m a year approximately. In addition, he
apparently asked for, and was apparently given, a fleet of luxury cars, a mansion, a
chauffeur, full time maids, a private plane for his travels, and many millions for every
post on social media that promotes Saudi Arabia. These are what we reportedly know;
there is also what we do not know, add it all up and we have the equivalent of burning a
$100 bill to light up a cigarette. The Saudi Pro League (SPL) is paying for his name and not for his football prowess. Names do not build a league, names build the brand.

The SPL is spending too much money on semi-finished footballers. Although money is
abundantly available in a bottom-less pit, paying astronomical sum to once-superstars
may do more harm than good to a league that wants to be among the top five.

Patience is a virtue and is rewarded. Rushing to get to a destination is not advisable.
The form may look good, the substance is measured on the football pitch. That is why
we learned to distinguish between form and substance.