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It is easy to pronounce such a sentence since Federer is 37 years old and has not reached the Grand Slam semifinal since the Australian Open last year.
But McEnroe – who tends to read quotes at the top of the list – has a point, at least as far as Federer's point of view is concerned.
The history of tennis tells us that even if Tsitsipas has talent, the inescapable hopes can make losing the benefits to the solids that never reach the expected level. Tsitsipas, however, seems to have everything. Power, precision, variety, desire – and a modest air.
But back to legendary Switzerland.
Federer's last three Grand Slam defeats are staggering, because of the quality of his performance for nearly two decades.
Indeed, when he claimed to have "created a monster" here in 2008 after a semi-final defeat against Novak Djokovic – the fact is that all his victories led people to believe that he was untouchable – Federer was right.
More than 10 years later, he still plays at an incredibly high level, offering Djokovic's man of the moment one of his toughest matches of 2018, in a phase where the Serb seemed untouchable and finishing the season in the top three.
The problem for Federer is that the Grand Slam tournaments, as he knows, are the best of the five sets and that the advantage he held is slightly dissipating. Even if it's a 1% change, at this level, it's the difference between a fourth round or potentially a semifinal: Movement, explosive and maybe even the trust of Federer.
Surprising losses
Federer broke the 4-0 record against the great servant Kevin Anderson before losing their quarter-final after scoring a goal at Wimbledon.
Federer later revealed that he was suffering from a problem in hand while he had only known one defeat at Wimbledon on two sets.
And he said that he had not been hurt by falling to Australian John Millman in the fourth round of the US Open.
It was not the killer instinct that was lacking at the time, but the torrid conditions affected Federer. It seemed like an unprecedented event for the man who was always unshakable, no matter the weather.
In recent memory, the great man has never suffered so much physically, except for an injury.
And then against Tsitsipas, Federer has incredibly successful a 0-on-12 with breaking points. At first glance, at the ATP and Grand Slam level, it was thought that Federer was the only time in which he was making double-digit stop numbers without taking at least one of those chances.
The three losses came when Federer won the first set.
He was 87-2 in Melbourne in the first set, beaten by two players already Grand Slam champions, Rafael Nadal and Marat Safin.
First time in a long time
And last time, he played three major tournaments without qualifying for the semi-finals? In 2013.
These figures certainly tell us that Federer was not the player that he was as recently as 2017, when he claimed two of the three major tournaments that he had contested after coming back from his home. 39, a problem with the knee.
If he intends to continue – and there is nothing to suggest that this was not the case on Sunday when he spoke with reporters – it is not for the first time that he will have to think about the adjustments to be made.
He brought in coaches in the past and the results were an improved one-handed setback and SABR's tactics, returning to the net after recovering the ball.
It would be very surprising if Federer gave up his coach Ivan Ljubicic, but would he add an extra vote?
The first big decision Federer must make is probably whether he will play, as the whispers suggest, a full swing on clay for the first time since 2016.
With this unexpected start to the season, participation in Roland Garros and Paris could do more harm than harm to his body.
Then, all of a sudden, his chances are nil at Wimbledon, which could well be the grand slam where he is most likely to add to his 20 major tournaments.
For fans, continuing to play – and you know it would be at a high level – would be enough.
No stop?
Call it a huge surprise because this author, if Federer – sponsored by the Japanese company Uniqlo – calls him before the Tokyo Olympics next year, since he has never won gold in singles at the Olympics. And this format is the best of the three sets until the final.
The return of the fairy tales of 2017 is over, but we have seen enough to make Federer never count it.
A reminder: the grand slam season is composed of four grand slams, not one.
Let's see what the rest of 2019 holds.
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