Opinion – Barcelona must forget about bringing this 59-goal genius back to Camp Nou

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Chinmay Athreya

Why Barcelona are better off without re-signing Neymar

Speculation regarding Neymar’s future has been rampant throughout the summer, with the Blaugrana interested in re-signing the player who left them two years ago.

The 27-year-old joined Paris Saint-Germain from the Catalans in 2017. However, injury and discipline issues have prevented him from living up to that exorbitant price tag. Neymar was signed by PSG’s Qatari owners to help them win the Champions League. While the French giants have continued to win the Ligue 1, they are no closer to lifting the continental title.

The No. 10 still has an impressive record at the Parc des Princes, with 59 goals in 69 appearances. He hasn’t hit the same heights he did at Barca though, having been omitted from the list of Ballon d’Or nominees for 2019.

At the Camp Nou, Neymar was part of MSN, one of the greatest football attacking trios of all time. Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi are still going strong and Barca are mulling over the possibility of a reunion next season.

According to Express, the club hierarchy will monitor Neymar’s performances in France. If the Brazilian can remain fit and maintain his level, the Blaugrana could go back in for him.

Neymar
Neymar (Image credit: Getty)

Barcelona need to let go of certain players in order to raise enough money to pay Paris Saint-Germain to land Neymar. Getting rid of a few players will also help lighten Barca’s wage bill. To make this happen, the club are closely monitoring Philippe Coutinho’s situation (h/t Daily Express). The Brazilian, who is currently out on loan at Bayern Munich, has done well so far, scoring and assisting 7 each in all competitions for the Bavarian club.

With Coutinho gradually getting back to the form he displayed during his time at Liverpool, it would be favourable for the Catalan giants to offload him and use that money to fund the Neymar move.

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Neymar is linked with a return to Barca (Image credit: Getty)

Adding Neymar to their roster would mean that Barcelona’s wage bill will eventually increase but letting go of players who are surplus to requirement would lessen the effects of the Brazilian’s high wages.

Verdict

Irrespective of what Neymar might be thinking about his future, bringing the Brazilian is a big transfer and one that Barcelona do not need right now.