Neymar's agent has revealed the Barcelona superstar was "close" to leaving the club for either Paris Saint Germain or Manchester United last summer, before he penned a contract extension with the Spanish champions.
The Brazilian is certainly hot property in the world of football and if any club could have him, they would take him in a flash. And bothUnited and PSG made approaches to sign him last summer - at least according to representative Wagner Ribeiro.
Neymar's agent insists a move away from Spain was 'close', according toESPN Brazil,until the Brazilian sensation penned a contract extension 'til 2021 with the Catalan giants.
He said:"He (Neymar)was close to joining PSG.He would have earned €40m-a-year net.
"Neymar was also close to a spell at Manchester United, but he extended his contract to earn less at Barcelona because he wanted to stay at Barcelona."
PSG, in search of a headline signing that would keeps the fans excited after the departure ofZlatan Ibrahimovic, were reportedly ready to completely obliteratethe world transfer record with a bid of€190m -and offera weekly salary of £650,000 after tax -for the Olympic gold medal winner.
Neymar's free kick to help Brazil won the gold! ⚽�🔥� Like if he's the playe... (Vine by ⚽�Everything Soccer⚽�) https://t.co/ddg42zKdpl
Should the Ligue 1 champions or Manchester Unitedcontinue their pursuit of Neymar, they will be inclined to pay even more now after Neymar agreed a contract extension.
Neymar's new deal includes a€200m buyout clause after the first year, whichwill rise to €222m the following year and €250m by 2019. However, a source from PSG has sad that the rumours arecompletelyfalse,L'Equipereported.
"It's totally false," they said. "With employer contributions on top, that salary would have cost more than €60m a year. It's obscene. Neymar used us to strengthen his hand with Barcelona."