Neymar completes his move to PSG

Posted Friday, August 04, 2017 by Marca.com

The saga of the summer has finally ended with Neymar finishing his tenure at Barcelona and instead switching to Paris Saint-Germain following his 222 million euro release clause being paid.

Standing as the biggest transfer fee in football history, the soap opera surrounding the Brazilian, the Catalan giants and the Parisians has now concluded, with the superstar continuing his career in Ligue 1.

His contract is for five seasons and includes a 30m euro signing bonus.

"With the arrival of Neymar Jr, I am convinced that we will come even closer," said club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi.

"With the support of our faithful fans, we can realise our greatest dreams."

The LaLiga giants fought until the end to keep their prized possession, but ultimately the offer and desire from the player to leave the club was too much.

The club's president had hoped the record-breaking move would be stopped by fair play regulations, yet it did not stop the ambitious French side.

"Paying the clause is breaching financial fair play," said Josep Maria Bartomeu.

First reported by Sport on Monday, July 17, MARCA anticipated the French side's ability to pay the huge buyout clause.

Unai Emery, acknowledged at the start of the summer his intentions of securing an elite talent, but now he has the crown jewel, as the Sao Paulo-born attacker draws his four seasons at the Camp Nou to a close.

The 25-year-old departs Spain to become the best paid footballer in European football ahead of his now former teammate Lionel Messi.

Attempts were made by his ex-teammates to prevent his journey to France but to no avail, as the Brazil international kept his head down and mouth closed in respect of his agreement that was made weeks ago.

Messi grabbed the headlines for his goals and assists on the recent US tour, but the story of Neymar in Catalonia finished in the only way we could expect: leaving as the most expensive transfer in history.