It's done: Neymar says goodbye to Barcelona to wear the PSG shirt. The Brazilian champion himself announced it to his now former Blaugrana teammates.
This is the richest transfer in football history. In all, the operation is worth over half a billion euros, of which 222 to the Catalan club, 60 of the player's gross annual salary - which becomes 30 net, for 5 years - and a commission of over 26 million to the father-prosecutor . Numbers never seen before, which rewrite the rules and limits of the football market.
Further confirmation came from a press release from the Spanish team: “The player, accompanied by his representatives, communicated to Barcelona this morning his wish to leave the club – it reads – The club, however, requires the payment of the release clause of the current contract, which amounts to 222 million euros. The player remains under contract with Barcelona but with temporary permission not to participate in training sessions."
The Qatari sheikhs of Paris Saint-Germain have thus found the right replacement for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who moved to Manchester United last year, in Mourinho's court, and is currently free.
In Paris Neymar will not only be the pivot of the attack, but also the cover man, a real brand to focus on for marketing and to revive the image of the World Cup in Qatar 2022, overshadowed by scandals related to corruption and the exploitation of workers facing charges of slavery.
At this point it is possible that at Barcelona – where the majority of fans have been insulting Neymar for a few days by accusing him of being a “mercenary” and a “traitor” – Marco Verratti lands, who would very much like to move to Catalan soil.
But the question that most circulates on the market is another: who will replace the Brazilian in the trident with Messi and Suarez? There are many possible names: among these, unfortunately for Juventus fans, there is also that of Paulo Dybala.
