Neymar to Saudi Arabia transfer increasingly likely as PSG desperate to sell, says journalist

Posted Friday, June 16, 2023 by Caughtoffside.com

Neymar sealing a transfer to a Saudi Pro League club looks increasingly likely as Paris Saint-Germain are desperate to get him off their books this summer.

This is according to Jonathan Johnson in his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, with the reporter explaining that PSG are unlikely to find buyers from elsewhere and are in no mood to be too picky.

Johnson acknowledges that there could be political tensions at play between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, but it seems the PSG ownership is still likely to be perfectly content to let Neymar go there if that's the only option.

The Brazil international is no longer at his best and it seems likely that his career in Europe could soon be over, with Johnson explaining that there doesn't seem to be any serious interest from the Premier League or other top European leagues, despite intermediaries sounding out possible suitors.

Barcelona have been more public in rejecting the chance to re-sign Neymar, and it seems the feeling is similar among other similar sides.

"Neymar is the latest big name of world football to be linked with clubs in the Saudi Pro League this summer, with initial talks taking place, as I understand it. A move to Saudi Arabia is now probably the most logical for Neymar at this stage in his career – my understanding is that he's been rebuffed by a number of people who could've offered him a potential out, most notably his old teammate Xavi, now manager at Barcelona, who said that as much as he loves him as a person, it's not part of the club's plan to bring the player back," Johnson said.

"This illustrates what we've known for a while now, which is that, at this moment in time, Neymar's stock as an elite-level footballer is at an all-time low. That means there's a very limited number of potential destinations that PSG can hope to jettison him. So Saudi Arabia is the most logical move for him, and it makes sense as a priority for them as well as they seek a new figurehead signing after missing out on Lionel Messi. They've started looking into the process of bringing Neymar to Saudi Arabia, but it will be a bit of a tricky one because PSG won't let him go without a transfer fee. Obviously they won't recoup the world-record fee they paid for him in 2017, but there is the potential for PSG to make some money back on getting rid of him, so that's something the parties are looking into now.

"Interestingly, while one might expect there to be a bit of tension or friction in a deal between Saudi Arabia and PSG's Qatari ownership, in this case my understanding is that they're so desperate to be rid of Neymar after a number of years of frustration, then they're ready to accept what is probably the least complicated option for them in terms of getting him out the door.

"In terms of interest from the Premier League, it's important to stress that it's not direct interest from club to club, but intermediaries trying to sound out English teams regarding Neymar. But as with Xavi publicly stating that Barcelona don't have an interest in him at this moment in time, no serious European club are ready to take a risk on Neymar, certainly not with any kind of deal that PSG would find acceptable.

"It's complicated in terms of the transfer fee and his wages, so that makes Saudi Arabia the most realistic landing spot for him – they have the money to bring PSG to the negotiating table, as well as to meet the Brazilian's demands. And they're more willing to take a risk on a player who, at this stage, would need to rehabilitate his reputation."