Neymar moves to Saudi Arabia: Was leaving Barcelona his biggest mistake?
Robin Bairner
- 15 Aug 2023 18:00 BST
- 5 min read
Neymar’s move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain was the deal that lifted the transfer market into a new stratosphere.
When PSG matched the Brazil international’s €222 million release clause, it absolutely shattered the previous record deals – more than doubling anything that had gone before it.
Neymar, of course, was drawn to Ligue 1 and Paris by the project proposed to him by the Parc des Princes club, which promised him the opportunity to become the game’s greatest star.
By any objective measure, though, he failed to live up to the hype - and as he leaves PSG to move to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia at the age of just 31, he must be reflecting if the mega move was the right thing to do.
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Neymar's poor PSG record
After six years at PSG, he has managed only 173 matches, and though he has scored 118 goals, the Champions League eluded him and the club.
Meanwhile, the Ballon d’Or that he moved to France in order to claim looks further away than ever before in the 31-year-old’s career. Indeed, we can say that his Ballon d'Or dreams are now over with his confirmed move to Saudi Arabia.
He moved to PSG to escape the shadow of Lionel Messi only to walk into the growing shade of Kylian Mbappe. Indeed, by the time Messi moved to PSG in the summer of 2021, there was a suggestion, ironically, that this was the deal that was required to finally unlock Neymar’s best level.
It never really worked. The Argentine endured perhaps the toughest club season of his professional career in his first campaign at PSG. Although he was back to close to his brilliant best for large stretches of 2022-23, the dream trio of Messi, Neymar and Mbappe never quite worked.
Neymar, meanwhile, faced constant criticism over his lifestyle, which is broadly perceived to have had an influence in the sheer number of injuries issues he has had in France.
Neymar at PSG
| Season | Games | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017/18 | 30 | 28 | 28 |
| 2018/19 | 28 | 23 | 14 |
| 2019/20 | 27 | 19 | 12 |
| 2020/21 | 31 | 17 | 14 |
| 2021/22 | 28 | 13 | 8 |
| 2022/23 | 29 | 18 | 14 |
“When you read between the lines, he doesn’t care about PSG,” RMC pundit Jerome Rothen, a former PSG and France player, said in October 2021 in reacting to Neymar claiming the 2022 World Cup will be his last.
“He has this love for Brazil and wants to try and win a World Cup for them. His last chance will be in Qatar.
“But I want to remind him of his duties. When you are a player in this category, when you are the emblematic figure of a club for more than four years, that you have signed a new contract with and that you decided to give the end of your career to, you cannot say that.
“I hope PSG don't give him his ethics bonus with statements like that. For me, it's abuse.”
Neymar, though, was clearly wearied with the game when making that claim in an interview with DAZN. His enthusiasm for football had waned – something that has clearly been a problem for quite some time.
Better at Barca?
How different Neymar’s life would be if he had stayed at Barcelona.
Alongside Messi and Luis Suarez at Camp Nou, he had formed arguably the deadliest trio in the history of football, and as he was coming into his peak, they would surely only have become stronger.
Football in France did not suit Neymar. Although a player known for his histrionics, he was often the target of brutal fouls in Ligue 1, which meant he was neither able to reach his best in terms of his physical level or his footballing level.
He should be credited with having the confidence to try his hand elsewhere and with his desire to build a legacy of his own in France, but equally this should be tempered with an acceptance that it is a decision that has not worked.
He was only 25 when he left Barcelona for PSG. Six years later at the age of 31 he has left Europe for the riches of Saudi Arabia. His European career is over.
