Neymar has put potential suitors on red alert after confessing he doesn’t see himself at Barcelona for the rest of his career but their European rivals shouldn’t get too carried away.
The Brazil international has spent the last four years at Barcelona after completing a controversial switch from Santos in 2013 and has developed into one of the best players in the world.
Neymar only signed a new five-year deal with Barcelona in October and is expected to remain at the club for the entirety of that deal but his future beyond that is less than clear-cut after confirming once again that he wants to return to Brazil and play for Flamengo in the future.
“I have a lot of desire to one day play for Flamengo, with the Maracana full, playing in the Copa Libertadores,” Neymar told Canal Esporte Interativo, via Yahoo!
“I don’t have an obligation to give my congratulations,” Neymar commented when asked why he didn’t celebrate Santos’ 105th anniversary. “I am grateful, I am thankful for everything they’ve done for me, I love and loved to play for Santos, my entire family are Santos supporters, I even turned into a Santos supporter, but I’m not obliged to do everything they wish.
“I have enormous respect for Santos, everyone in my family are Santos supporters, only that also has a bad side. Santos entered the courts against us for something I still don’t understand today.
“They said the only thing missing was if I scored an own-goal in the game against Barcelona [in the 2011 Club World Cup final]. There are details that nobody knows.”
Neymar has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester United in the last 12 months but it would appear his next move after Barcelona could be a return to his homeland, although that would probably rile Santos more if he was to join one of their rivals.
The 25-year-old is the highest rated player in Europe’s top five leagues this season (8.43) after playing a direct hand in 19 goals in 26 league appearances this season.
For more stats on Neymar, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
