Neymar, one of the most prominent global soccer stars, encountered rejections from several clubs, including three renowned Premier League giants.
Neymar is on the brink of making a high-profile move to Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League.
Nevertheless, during this summer transfer window, three Premier League clubs have reportedly declined the opportunity to sign the Brazilian superstar.
Following his world-record transfer from Barcelona to PSG in 2017 for a staggering fee of €222 million, Neymar’s potential departure has seemingly left PSG accepting his exit.
Despite the immense financial investment, PSG’s aspiration of a Champions League title during Neymar’s tenure has not materialized. Their closest approach was a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in the 2020 final.
Amid the absence of European trophies, Neymar has significantly contributed to PSG’s collection of several Ligue 1 championships, amassing 118 goals and 77 assists in 173 matches.
Maintaining a goal contribution rate exceeding one per game is a commendable feat, regardless of opinions about the level of competition in France’s premier division.
Although judgments about the quality of football in Ligue 1 may vary, consistently achieving over a goal contribution per game is undeniably impressive.
After spending a substantial six years at PSG, Neymar’s tenure at the club is reaching its conclusion. An agreement has been reached for the 31-year-old to embark on a £86.3 million transfer to Al Hilal, a Saudi Arabian club.
Neymar’s move to Al Hilal explained
According toThe Sun, the winger will earn an eye-watering £137.8 million-per-year while playing in the Middle East for the club that previously tried to sign other PSG players. This equates to an incredible £2.65 million-per-week.
Lionel Messi was subject of a substantial contract offer from the club earlier in the summer transfer window, but he turned the move down in favour of heading to Inter Miami in the MLS.
Al Hilal were also willing to smash the transfer record set by Neymar’s move to PSG as they had a £258 million bid accepted for French superstar, Kylian Mbappe. The forward – like Messi – also turned down a move to the emerging league despite truly staggering wages being offered.
Neymar’s going to be earning nearly £400,000 every single day😳 pic.twitter.com/iqjp0uuHWn
— The Sun Football ⚽ (@TheSunFootball) August 14, 2023
This makes it third time lucky in their attempts to sign an established star from the PSG front line, although the financial incentive will be a nice cushion for the blow of being the third choice.
The player was reported to be desperate to remain in Europe while wanting a move away from PSG in search of a new challenge according toThe Independent.
Interestingly, the sole European club displaying interest in acquiring the services of the Samba star was his former team, Barcelona.
However, Barcelona encountered a significant hurdle due to their financial struggles, and their proposal could only materialize as a loan arrangement.
In addition to Barcelona, the opportunity to secure Neymar’s transfer was extended to their fierce rivals, Real Madrid, as well as Bayern Munich.
Nevertheless, both Real Madrid and Bayern Munich promptly declined the prospect, citing the substantial financial considerations associated with the proposed deal.
Three English clubs were also alerted to his availability, but obviously none of those potential moves panned out.
Which three Premier League clubs turned down Neymar?
Manchester United were one of the three sides in question, and possibly one of the more likely destinations for Neymar due to the Red Devils’ love of bringing in a marquee name every summer.
It is also hard to see exactly where he would fit in with Marcus Rashford in red hot form during the 2022/23 season in the same position as the Brazilian.
That is not to say a player of Neymar’s quality would be brought in to warm the Old Trafford bench, but it was definitely not a priority position for reinforcements heading into this summer.
The progress of Alejandro Garnacho’s advancement in the team hierarchy would likely be hindered if another established senior player were to join and claim a higher position.
Given Erik ten Hag’s emphasis on fostering young talent, the prospect of encouraging such a move was always improbable.
Had Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City shown interest in recruiting Neymar, he could have been plying his trade on the opposite side of Manchester.
However, this was not the situation. Instead, Manchester City prioritized Josko Gvardiol and potentially a central midfielder, allocating a significant portion of their transfer budget for the summer towards these acquisitions.
Jack Grealish and Phil Foden represent enough quality on the left-wing for the Citizens with no further big money signings being required in that role.
The rest of the Premier League will be feeling relieved this is not a deal that materialised in the end as City look firm favourites for their fourth league title in a row.
Todd Boehly’s Chelsea were the final English team named in the Independent’s article, and with the way they tear through the transfer market, it would have probably not shocked many to see that move happen.
Surprisingly, the potential transfer was turned down with focus on other targets such as Moises Caicedo – who is set to make a British record move from Brighton.
A massive fee was laid out for Mykhailo Mudryk in January, and he will be the main left sided winger for the coming season. He will be given time under new management to find his feet at Stamford Bridge without Neymar coming in to steal his starting spot.