Barcelona explore sensational Neymar return as PSG set price for Brazilian superstar

The Brazilian is not in Paris Saint-Germain’s plans and is reluctant to entertain offers to move to Saudi Arabia

Miguel Delaney
Chief Football Writer
Thursday 10 August 2023 07:27 BST
Comments
Neymar has told PSG he wants to leave the club, the PA news agency understands (Tim Goode/PA)
Neymar has told PSG he wants to leave the club, the PA news agency understands (Tim Goode/PA) (PA Archive)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Barcelona are looking at a sensational loan with an option to buy for Neymar, as the Brazilian's fractious time at Paris Saint-Germain is coming to a close.

The French club’s new manager Luis Enrique and football advisor Luis Campos have been working on a vision for the team that involves hard running and young players.

And the Ligue 1 champions have told the 31-year-old he can leave six years after his world-record €222 million (£200m) transfer.

Neymar's main preference is to return to Barcelona, and the club are investigating the possibility despite some internal debate.

Although a primary issue is that they would likely need to offload a series of players to make Neymar’s return financially viable.

This is also why an initial loan is being looked at, as PSG are looking to bring in around £60m (£51.8m) for Neymar.

The Camp Nou executive feels that they can make it work due to his huge commercial profile.

That is one reason he hasn't yet accepted a huge offer from the Saudi Pro League, since he wants to be in peak condition for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Neymar is said to be obsessed with becoming a star in America. As such, he wants to continue playing Champions League football until then.

The negotiations may be smoothed over by the fact PSG are poised to sell Marco Verratti to Al Hilal for €50 million, with that deal going down to the final details.

The Saudi Pro League may end up being Neymar's most viable destination, but he is intent on staying in the Champions League. The main issue is that Luis Enrique is now preparing a team without him.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in