Another Paris Saint-Germain star reportedly wants out.
Brazilian forward Neymar told his management team he doesn’t want to return to his professional club this summer, according to French outlet L’Equipe. Neymar has spent the past six seasons with PSG.
Neymar, 30, is now the second high-profile Paris Saint-Germain player who wants to leave. Forward Kylian Mbappé said in June he wouldn’t sign a contract extension with a year left on his contract, which prompted PSG to open up transfer talks with anyone interested in the talented forward. Another ex-PSG star, Lionel Messi, also left this summer for Inter Miami, where he’s quickly become the goal-scoring phenom he’s been at every other stop.
The duo of Mbappé and Neymar helped power PSG to five Ligue 1 titles since 2017. Messi was there for the club’s past two championships. Neymar scored 82 goals and assisted on 48 with PSG. He has 150 goals and 83 assists for his career in 235 professional club matches.
If Neymar were to leave, the most obvious team that could target him would be the one he left for PSG: La Liga juggernaut Barcelona. Neymar played four years with the Spanish club from 2013 to 2016 where he won two league titles and scored 68 goals with 35 assists in 123 appearances.
According to international football insider Fabrizio Romano, Neymar would “love” to return to Barcelona but it’s still unclear if that club would make the move to bring back the forward. ESPN Deportes’ Jordi Blanco reported Monday there is a divide within Barcelona on a possible Neymar deal, too.
There were rumors PSG and Manchester United of the English Premier League were talking about a Neymar transfer, but Romano reported in May there were no concrete discussions about such a move. Man United manager Erik ten Hag also refused to comment on Neymar rumors in May.
