Neymar: ‘I tried to return to FC Barcelona. We tried everything, but it was not possible’

Santos, FC Barcelona, ​​Paris Saint-Germain and… a future that points to the MLS before returning to Brazil. This is Neymar Jr.’s sporting life plan as he confessed on the microphones of the podcast phenomenain which Ronaldo Nazario also collaborates and to whom he ‘hesitated’: “We hope to make history against your Real Madrid”.

Before that, he longed for his frustrated return to Barça. Finally, he had the fortune to meet up with his partner and friend Messi in Paris: “I tried to return to Barça. We tried everything, but it was not possible. Then Leo was presented with the opportunity to come here. I’m very happy”.

At 30 years old and with a contract until 2025 with Paris Saint-Germain, Neymar is already thinking about his next steps. First of all, he valued a return to Brazil. “I really want to play again for Santos. What I really miss is playing in the town, my God, that wonderful stadium, ”he acknowledged.

Of course, his entry into soccer on the American continent is planned to be done through the United States and the MLS. “I also really want to play in the United States, at least one season… It’s a short championship. You have three or four months of vacation … ”, he acknowledged, revealing the entire plan.

With an undoubted commercial potential, a taste for the cameras and the show and a game as decisive as it is colorful, Neymar would be a tremendous claim for American football that would have another Brazilian legend passing through its fields, after the stay of Pelé (NY Cosmos, 75-77) several decades ago.

North American football would thus bring together in its curriculum the two top scorers in the history of the Brazilian team. With his arrival, Neymar would also join an exclusive group of stars including, among others, Beckenbauer, Best, Cruyff, Eusebio, Müller, Hugo Sánchez and, more recently, Beckham, Henry, David Villa, Rooney, Pirlo, Gerrard, Lampard, Drogba or Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is still active at Milan.

One of the great stars of the last decade

Arrived as the last great talent from Brazil, Neymar confirmed in Barcelona and elevates in Paris all that he promised in Santos when he was still a teenager with a Mohican rebel in the wind.

320 games in Europe, 196 goals and 20 titles between the Camp Nou and the Parc des Princes, in addition to the most expensive transfer in history, prove a successful career in which he still seeks to be crowned European champion with the French.

Injuries since his arrival in France and a major title with Brazil (4th most appearances, 2nd top scorer) appear as they should in this stage of his career. Some challenges to meet before embarking on his last trips in football. (D)