Neymar Transfer: A ‘most difficult decision’ as Brazilian nets €30 million salary

Brazilian footballer Neymar has insisted that ambition ruled him away from Barcelona after completing his €222 million transfer.

The former Barcelona star, who just signed a lucrative deal with Paris Saint Germain that will see him earn €30m a year, made it clear that he was not influenced by money after choosing to continue his career with PSG.

At the end of the week, the football world was stunned as PSG made Neymar the most expensive player in the world after deciding to pay his full €222 million release clause to make the ex-Barcelona player part of their squad.

When discussing the transfer, PSG’s chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi said that such fee will not be regarded as expensive within two to three years:

“I don’t think it is expensive, I’m sure we are going to make more money. I can guarantee that Neymar did not come for the money. He could get much more money elsewhere than here. The world is going to talk about this transfer for long time. Hopefully positively, he didn’t come here for money. Today it is the most expensive, but in two-three years will it be? I’m sure we will make more money than we have paid. We had been very transparent from day one on Financial Fair Play. We are working under the regulations. For people worrying about Financial Fair Play, go have coffee, there are no problems.”

Al-Khelaifi’s comments about financial fair play were made since Barcelona questioned how PSG could complete the transfer in compliance with UEFA Financial Fair Play. To put things into context, last year Barcelona made a record of more than €653 million in revenue and are classified as the second most valuable soccer club in the world after Manchester United. On the other hand, PSG registered €78 million. In the light of this, Barcelona asked for an investigation as the FFP limits the losses and contributions owners can spend to sign players.

Despite all this money and controversy, Neymar made it clear that his move was not motivated by money. When questioned during his presentation, the 25 year old argued that he needed a bigger challenge than playing for Barcelona could offer. He said:

“I wanted something bigger, a bigger challenge. My heart made the decision and made me follow that ambition and that is why I am here today. I want to dream bigger, to do my best and to do even better.”

In fact, Neymar insisted that this was one of the most difficult decisions of his life:

“It was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve ever taken... I had to think, rethink and think again about what I want to do with my life I leave a lot of very good friends behind. I would like to thank all my friends at Barcelona, they welcomed me so well. But I felt it was the right time.”

Despite these claims, many football fans around the world will definitely think that money played a major role in this transfer as Neymar will be earning huge amounts of money.

To break down a bit, Neymar will earn 98c each second, €59 per minute, €3543 per hour, €85,000 per day, €595,289 per week, €2.5 million per month and €30 million per year after tax.

To put such hefty money into framework, after just 25.5 hrs he will match British prime minister Theresa May’s salary. Moreover, Neymar only need 16 weeks to match Paul Pogba’s salary who was the world’s most expensive player until this week.

This transfer will definitely affect both Barcelona and PSG. As stated by their chairman, the latter side are optimistic that with Neymar in their team they can clinch back the Ligue 1 title from Monaco and also challenge for European glory.

On the other hand, with €222 million paid in full Barcelona can start their hunt for a striker that could replace Neymar. International press is reporting that Thomas Lemar of Monaco and Ousmane Dembele of Borussia Dortmund are on their radar. Paolo Dybala of Juventus is also a player that the Spanish giants are looking at. In fact, various Italian newspapers are reporting that Barcelona placed a bid of €120 million or cash plus Andreas Iniesta, Rafinha or Andre Gomes. However, it seems that Juventus are holding firm in their attempts to keep their star man.

The remaining weeks of the transfer market will definitely be watched closely by those people who are enthusiastic about football as more high profile players could switch clubs. Though, for the time being, the discussion will definitely be about the massive amounts of money payed for footballers and the distribution of wealth throughout the world.