Barcelona transfer news: Neymar will not return in the summer, says club president Josep Maria Bartomeu

The Brazilian has continually been linked with a return to the Catalan club

Barcelona’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu has dismissed the possibility of Neymar returning to the club this summer.

The Brazilian, who left Barcelona in 2017 for £200m to join PSG, has continuously been linked with a return to the Spanish champions.

Messi, in particular, has stoked the possibility of reuniting with the Brazilian, however, this week Bartomeu made clear that there was no possibility of Neymar returning.

“I’ve spoken with Neymar, we’ve seen each other a few times, but his people have never told me he wants to come back,” Bartomeu told Spanish radio station Radio Kanal Barcelona.

“No one’s called us about it. Neymar has a contract with PSG. It’s his second season there and it’s very difficult [to imagine] they want to sell. We didn’t want to.

“We have the disadvantage of the [release] clause here. European clubs [can] take advantage of that. That’s not the case [in France] so it’s not possible for him to return.

“The club’s taken another path, with [Ousmane] Dembele, [Philippe] Coutinho. We have to move on with them. They’re the two biggest investments in the club’s history and we back them 100 per cent.”

Matthijs de Ligt is a transfer target for Barcelona in the summer (Getty)

Barca invested £65m in Ajax teenager Frenkie De Jong in January, with the 21-year-old joining the club next summer. However, Bartomeu didn’t rule out further poaching from Ajax, with centre-back wonderkid Matthijs de Ligt also a target.

“We have followed De Ligt for a while. It’s true he’s a player we like, but Barca also have other important players in the squad,” he continued.

“We will look at more things from March or April. We’re delighted to watch him play and admire him, but there’s nothing more at the moment.”