Football still remains on hold thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, and the downtime has allowed Paris Saint-Germain manager, Thomas Tuchel, to reflect on a player that gives everything to his side.
The former Borussia Dortmund coach’s words are sure to disappoint Barcelona too, for they relate to the former Blaugrana star, Neymar.
“Ney is always the key, offensively and defensively,” Tuchel said, per the Daily Express.
“But I really have to say, he is always reliable when important matches happen. He works a lot, he is always there, he is very intelligent, controls the ball […] It gives everyone a good impression: for me, the team, on the field, it’s great.”
It appears that the Brazilian would still like a move back to the Camp Nou, and though money is evidently a problem at Barcelona, there have been signs that the Catalans are trying their best to secure a player who helped them to a second treble in 2015.
Mundo Deportivo, cited by the Daily Mail, do note, however, that Neymar would need to take a pay cut of approximately €26m a year in order to get the chance to ply his trade alongside former team-mates Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi.
Even if he were to accede to such a cut, perhaps because of an apparent desperation to move from Paris, it’s believed that Barcelona would have to find well in excess of €150m for his services, which will surely be beyond them in the current climate.