Patrick Rees
Manchester United have once again entered into an unexpected fray as a report from the Don Balon (h/t Express Sports) has claimed that the Red Devils are in talks with Barcelona’s 25-year-old sensation, Neymar, over a potential move next year.
The Brazilian international has grown frustrated at Camp Nou and this has seen his future at the club come under heavy scrutiny. Besides, he also has been disheartened mainly due to the fact that he has always remained under the brilliance of Lionel Messi. Hence, he prefers leaving the Catalan outfit in order to challenge the Argentine maestro for the prestigious Ballon D’Or.
Having said that, Manchester United will certainly won’t find the acquisition of Neymar as undemanding, as Paris Saint-Germain, too, have shown a reported interest. And if the reports from the Brazilian outlet Esporte Interativo (h/t Metro) are to be believed, they are even ready to break the transfer record by activating Neymar’s release clause of €222million (£197m). The same source has further quoted that PSG’s sporting director, Antero Henrique, travelled back to the capital to resolve some ‘urgent matters’, one of which were some important talks with the club’s president Nasser Al-Khelaifi.
United, on their part, have acted quickly and their officials are discussing all the matters. Given their financial pedigree, they could well offer an extravagant fee of more than £200million for his signature. All this, however, will be done in an year’s time as the Brazilian himself wants to play for another year for Barcelona.
Following this, one of Barcelona’s spokesmen, Josep Vives, revealed that Barcelona are confident that Neymar would stay put and are also quite calm regarding the speculation.
“Selling Neymar is not something the club would think about,” spokesman Josep Vives said at a press conference. “We are very calm. He is one of the most important players we have, we will not consider any offers we receive for him.”
He was further asked whether Neymar is unhappy, as reported by the sources, at the club, and he simply replied:
“He is still happy here,” he added. “Playing as he did last year, he showed that he is still getting better. He is fantastic and is happy with the club and we are delighted with him.”
Having said that, it will now be interesting to see what Jose Mourinho decides eventually. He is already linked Inter Milan’s Ivan Perisic who is of the similar irk and fits in Mourinho’s plan perfectly, thanks to his excessive work-rate. Besides, the likes of Juan Mata, Anthony Martial, Jesse Lingard are already fighting for a spot. So it is quite fair to say that Neymar’s arrival would see one or two of these stars being sold.
