Neymar reacts to Lionel Messi's departure from Barcelona

Lionel Messi and Neymar were teammates at Barcelona. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Former Barcelona superstar Neymar Jr has reacted to Lionel Messi's departure from the Nou Camp.

The Brazilian international did not post anything on social media himself. However, Lionel Messi's former teammate liked an Instagram post of both him and Messi in a Paris Saint-Germain shirt, hugging each other.

This comes just a couple of days after Lionel Messi was seen with Paris Saint-Germain players Neymar, Angel Di Maria, Marco Veratti and Leandro Paredes.

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Ever since Barcelona confirmed Lionel Messi won't be signing a new deal, questions surrounding the six-time Ballon d'Or winner's future have come up. Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are believed to be the favorites to sign the 34-year-old superstar.

Neymar could be giving a hint regarding Lionel Messi's immediate future with his Instagram activity.

According to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, PSG had made contact regarding Lionel Messi's situation at Barcelona and seemed keen to sign the free agent.

Paris Saint-Germain started new contacts to ask about Leo Messi situation yesterday, right after La Liga blocked new contract agreement with Barça 🔴🇦🇷 #PSG

Messi will take his time to see what happens. He turned down PSG and City approaches months ago, as he only wanted Barça.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 6, 2021

It is worth noting that Lionel Messi previously turned down an opportunity to join Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain to remain with Barcelona. However, the situation is different now with Messi now being able to negotiate with a club of his choice.

Paris Saint-Germain have already shown tremendous ambition in the transfer window by signing the likes of Sergio Ramos, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Gini Wijnaldum and Achraf Hakimi.

Also Read: Fabrizio Romano's Transfer Roundup: Chelsea pushing for major signing, updates on Lukaku and Kane's futures and more

Barcelona cite economic conditions as reason for Lionel Messi's contract debacle

According to FC Barcelona's official statement, the club were unable to afford Lionel Messi's new contract due to the financial regulations surrounding player registration in La Liga. Barcelona's official statement reads as follows:

"Despite FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi having reached an agreement and the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen because of Spanish LaLiga regulations on player registration."

Lionel Messi was extremely close to signing a new five-year deal with Barcelona before the start of the new season. However, the deal fell through at the eleventh hour.

Lionel Messi joining either Paris Saint-Germain or Manchester City could be the biggest transfer saga of the 21st century.

Also Read: David James' column - Ranking the 5 best signings made in the transfer window so far