Gerard Pique has welcomed the prospect of Neymar returning to Barcelona from Paris Saint Germain, insisting “anything can happen” in football.
Neymar completed a world record £200 million move to PSG in the summer of 2017, bringing to an end a trophy-laden four-year spell ar Camp Nou – as per BBC Sport.
The Brazilian winger had hoped that his chances of winning the Ballon d’Or would increase if he stepped out of Lionel Messi’s shadow at Barca, but his time in France has been overshadowed by injuries and disciplinary issues.
Neymar sought a move back to Catalunya this summer, but Barca ultimately failed to reach an agreement with PSG after months of negotiations.
Marca reports that Pique is still eager to see Barca seal a transfer deal for the 27-year-old in the near future and open to a wage restructure at the club if it means a global superstar can be brought back into the fold.
“Neymar back to Barcelona? In football, anything can happen,” Pique told El Larguero.
“We already told him: you’re going to a golden prison. The doors are open for him [to return].
“What’s been said, that he wants to return to Barcelona, yes [it’s true].
“We told Bartomeu that if payments were deferred on contracts to adjust to financial fair play in order for Neymar to join, we’d do it.”
Neymar is currently taking in another spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, which has disrupted his progress at the start of the 2019-20 campaign.
The Brazil international put a summer of intense transfer speculation behind him to contribute four goals in five Ligue 1 appearances upon his return to PSG’s line up, but persistent fitness problems continue to hold him back.
Barcelona have not been quite the same in terms of an attacking force since Neymar’s departure, but it remains to be seen whether or not he will end up back at Camp Nou in 2020.
