Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu has stepped in and put an end to speculation that Neymar could be leaving the club this summer.
Tension and concern had been building over the Brazilian international’s future at the Nou Camp, as on-going transfer talk had suggested that Paris Saint-Germain were preparing to launch a mammoth bid for him.
According to The Sun, that would have involved meeting his staggering €222m release clause, while reports had claimed that not only was Neymar unsettled at Barcelona, but that his father was also set to meet with PSG officials to discuss a transfer.
Naturally, it would be the biggest signing of the summer by far if the 25-year-old was to move. It would be a huge loss for Barcelona, a major gain for PSG and big show of personal ambition from the player himself to want to leave the success at the Nou Camp to lead the Parisian giants to their own new level of success.
However, Bartomeu has ruled out the possibility of an exit now by personally stepping in and commenting on the situation, and insisted that it’s impossible for any club to meet the release clause without falling foul of Financial Fair Play regulations.
It seems strange for Neymar to have signed such a deal if that was the case as that ultimately keeps him at Barcelona with no other club capable of prising him away, with Bartomeu clear that there is no intention to sell from the perspective of the Catalan giants.
“He has a contract for the coming four years and, of course, we count on him,” he said, as noted in the report.
“He’s part of our team. He’s part of this [attacking] trident [with Messi and Luis Suarez].
“These clauses are impossible to activate if you want to comply with Financial Fair Play. If someone doesn’t want to comply, then of course it can be activated.”