Reports: Neymar sues Barcelona for €44 million
Neymar has reportedly taken his former club Barcelona to court in what is the latest chapter in the long-running saga between both parties. The Brazilian's lawyers are demanding the sum of €44m as part of the fees he believes he is still owed by the Blaugrana. Neymar's lawyers also filed an appeal against an earlier ruling, delivered in June, that ordered him to pay €6.7m to Barcelona.
Neymar spent four hugely successful years at Camp Nou between 2013 and 2017, forming one of the best attacking trios in footballing history with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.
However, his arrival from Santos came in very acrimonious circumstances, with allegations of funds diversion and tax fraud leading to then president Sandro Rosell's resignation in 2014.
His departure was also less than cordial, and despite signing for the French giants for a world-record fee, there has been a lot of bad blood between the player and his former side, amidst claims of owed and unpaid bonuses.
A ruling in June had mandated Neymar to pay Barcelona the sum of €6.7m over a contract dispute, but latest reports suggest that he has appealed the judgement.
The Neymar and Barcelona saga, a love story soured by claims and counterclaims
When the going was smooth between Neymar and Barcelona, the former Santos man proved his worth to the club's cause and played a key role in the on-field successes enjoyed by the side.
The Brazil international signed a contract extension in July 2016 that would have kept him in Spain until 2021 and a clause in the deal included bonuses to the tune of 26 million euros.
However, the club reneged on their side of the deal amidst reports that Neymar was on his way to PSG, and reportedly did not make the payments before he left Camp Nou.
This is the payment that the forward's legal team is demanding and reports in Spain reveal that they have sued the Catalan giants to court.
It remains to be seen what the outcome of this latest dispute would be. but it is an acrimonious end to what was once a mutually beneficial relationship.
Neymar is currently sidelined with a leg injury, but will hope to get back to action as PSG hope to build on the gains made last season. He is set to discuss an extension to his current contract with the French giants.