PSG star Neymar Jr linked with shock return to former club - Reports
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar Neymar Jr.'s camp has been contacted by his former club Santos' ex-president Marcelo Teixeira, this is according to UOL.
The Brazilian attacker's future has been up in the air for a while and he has also been heavily linked with a surprise return to Barcelona. Now, his first club, Santos have reportedly got in touch as Teixeira visited the player's father's office in Brazil, the aforementioned report stated.
The superstar attacker came up through the academies of Santos and became a real star in Brazilian football with his skills for the club. He made 138 appearances for them, scoring 71 goals and providing 37 assists before joining Barcelona back in 2013.
Neymar, meanwhile, joined PSG in 2017 for a world record transfer fee of €222 million. He has since made 173 appearances for the Parisian club, scoring 118 goals and providing 77 assists across competitions.
Former Barcelona vice-president said PSG superstar Neymar cried to return to the La Liga giants
Neymar has been a success for PSG since his 2017 move from Barcelona. While he has been injury-prone, when fit, the player has been one of the best in the business.
Jordi Mestre, though, recently said that the attacker once cried for a return to the Catalan club. Speaking about the superstar forward's intention to make a return to the Blaugrana, Mestre said (via Daily Express):
"Nobody knew he would leave because he didn't tell anyone. He didn't tell anyone. Then, he soon started to cry with regret and told us he wanted to return. The players asked for him but didn't pressurise the club. I came off badly in that. If he had come back and the club had benefitted because of it, I wouldn't have a problem with that. I'm not that proud. On sporting terms, he could come back but on a series of conditions."
He added:
"Firstly, PSG have to agree. Then he would have to withdraw his lawsuit and acknowledge that he was in the wrong and after that, all the birthday parties in Brazil would have to stop. There were players from the first team squad who were at a wedding with him but had no idea that he wanted to leave."
Neymar had a dazzling spell with Barcelona before his 2017 move to Ligue 1. The Brazilian superstar scored 105 goals and provided 76 assists in 186 games for the Catalan club and was also a part of the team that won the treble under Luis Enrique in the 2014-15 season.