There was a certain sense of anti-climax following the confirmation that Neymar would be making a switch from Santos to Barcelona.

It had long been reported that the Brazil star favoured a move to the Catalans, and on paper the 21-year-old's link up with Lionel Messi is mouth-watering, with Barca pinning their hopes on the new signings ability to solve the issue of messidependencia (over-dependence on the little Argentine).

But there is a school of thought that Neymar is over-rated despite his exuberant talent and is set up for a major fall when he finally sets foot in a European team.

As Off The Ball contributor and South American football expert Tim Vickery has always said, the style of play in Brazil is very distinctive to the tactics that we are accustomed to in Europe.

Whereas the game is slower and defenders sit very deep in Brazil, leaving space for the likes of Neymar and an apparently resurgent Ronaldinho to thrive, in Europe backlines press higher up the field and squeeze the play in a much more intense fashion.

A player like Messi has the quality to thrive in those testing circumstances but in the rare games that Neymar has played against top level European opposition at club and international level, he has not been particularly impressive.

Barcelona v Santos (World Club Cup final) Dec, 2011

The 2011 final saw Pep Guardiola's team hammer the Copa Libertadores champions 4 - 0 in Japan.

Billed as a showdown between Messi and a then 19-year-old Neymar, the wonderkid made little impact in the final, although he cannot take much blame due to the disparity between the two sides.

Santos had less than 30 per cent possession against a Barca side still at their peak which did not give Neymar much of a platform to build on.

Germany 3 - 2 Brazil (Friendly) Aug, 2011

Neymar managed to score a late goal in this game, but he was outshone by fellow teenage superstar Mario Gotze.

He did showcase his pace and trickery however, but went missing for large portions of the game before that injury time strike.

England 2 - 1 Brazil (Friendly) Feb, 2013

With this game being a friendly, Neymar can be cut some slack. In addition, Brazil were still finding their feet with the heavy weight of next year's World Cup to think about.

But his impact against the Three Lions was fairly minimal despite his star billing. Encouragingly his movement and interplay was excellent early on, but he failed to show composure with his finishing.

However judging Neymar on a handful of friendly games and a lopsided match against Barcelona is harsh. Yes, Neymar is over-hyped and even though he turns up to matches on time, possibly he is a sort of Justin Bieber of football as Joey Barton claims.

But one must take his age into account. He is still 21 and has much to learn which means his detractors should view him as a raw talent rather than the finished article he is often portrayed as.

How he takes to life at the Camp Nou will be vital in the build up to next year's World Cup on home soil. Thus far he has shown an independent streak, but he needs to learn how to fit into a collective unit like Barcelona and most European sides.