Revealed: How Messi ensured Neymar joined Barcelona in 2013
Karan Tejwani
- 19 Oct 2022 15:30 BST
- 3 min read
Lionel Messi is a Barcelona legend for many reasons, and he even helped the club sign Neymar back in 2013, when the Brazilian was still emerging at Santos.
The pair became great friends on and off the pitch in their time together at Barcelona between 2013 and 2017, and have now continued the relationship at Paris Saint-Germain.
Despite Neymar’s controversial departure from Barcelona, Messi and him continued to be close and there were even links that he was trying to convince the Argentine to move to the French capital long before his move.
Now, according to Neymar’s former agent, it has been revealed how much Messi pushed to bring Neymar to the Camp Nou in the first place.
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Messi pushed for Neymar signing
Wagner Ribeiro, Neymar’s former agent, said: “He [Messi] wanted Neymar, he made many proposals, and so did Barcelona. Whenever Madrid made a proposal, Barcelona covered it.
“Madrid withdrew from the bid when there was a conversation with Messi to sign for Barça, Messi was essential for the signing,” Ribeiro added later on.
Ribiero has worked with Neymar since 2006 and took him to Madrid in to train with Real Madrid for nearly three weeks, before being involved in the transfer of his image rights, which has now caused controversy.
Leo Messi on Neymar: “We know each other by heart, we enjoyed at Barcelona for a long time, he told me I wish I could enjoy it a lot more in Barça but there was no chance. Now in PSG we’re happy to be together. I like to play with him daily, so I'm enjoying him.” 🇦🇷🗣️ pic.twitter.com/3vaUEoR2h7
— PSG Report (@PSG_Report) September 25, 2022
Later on, Ribiero also denied any rumours that Neymar had agreed a deal to
move to Real Madrid in 2011, and that his agreement with Barcelona in 2013 was the only one made.
Together, Messi and Neymar were successful for four years, winning the treble in 2015, as well as another league title in 2016.
They have continued that positive relationship at PSG since Messi moved there in 2021 and have already won Ligue 1 once, with the aim of bringing the Champions League to the French capital for the first time ever.
