Strength in Depth in Final Third and a Challenger for David Villa

In all the praise and excitement over Neymar, it must not be overlooked that the man whose place he would most likely take in the Barcelona side is the hugely successful David Villa.

The former Zaragoza forward missed most of last season through injury, but he will have recovered to play his part in the forthcoming season and will be anxious to make up for lost time.

There are two ways to look at the Neymar-Villa battle. In one scenario, Villa's position in the side remains the same and he plays plenty of league football, giving Neymar a chance to both get used to the European game and learn the Barcelona way of playing, whilst getting his chance in European games.

Alternatively, Villa would be freed up to play a more central role when needed or be used as an impact substitute when Neymar was off-form, tiring or simply needing to be replaced if Barcelona were unable to find a route to goal.

Certainly, for all his brilliance, there should be no suggestion of Neymar simply walking in and taking the place of one of the finest goalscorers of the last half a dozen years.

The signing of Neymar would be a massive coup for Barcelona though, and even if he doesn't start all the time domestically, the Champions League would be a great stage for him to showcase his talents and could be a big factor in pushing Barcelona towards winning it outright once more.