In a recent interview, Neymar Sr. returned to the years of his son to Paris Saint-Germain, highlighting both the ups and downs of this significant period. According to him, PSG represented an ambitious project for Neymar Jr, who sought to get out of the shadow of Messi at FC Barcelona to become the main star of a large European club. He evokes the efforts made by the player to integrate into a workforce sometimes unbalanced and undermined by internal tensions. Neymar Sr. admits that despite impressive statistics and moments of grace, his son has never really succeeded in achieving regularity and impact expected in Paris, largely because of repeated injuries and an environment which he describes as very demanding but not very stable.
Today, Neymar Jr. has returned to Brazil, again wearing the Santos jersey, his training club, after a missed Passage to Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia. Neymar Sr. comments on this new step with lucidity, explaining that the return to the country is as much a personal and professional choice. He admits that experience at PSG, then the failure of the Saudi project – hampered by a serious injury – pushed his son to refocus on his roots, far from European projectors. This return to Santos is seen by Neymar Sr. as a form of Renaissance, a means for his son to reconnect with pure football, in a more human environment and meaningful, despite the media and sporting retreat that this represents.
His relationship with Nasser!
Regarding the passage of Neymar Jr. to PSG, his father returns with emotion and frankly on what he considers the best period of his son's career, while evoking the circumstances of departure and the still strong relationship with the Parisian club: “His best phase was however at PSG. He just missed the Champions League. He was one of the craftsmen of this first final (in 2020). But we were unlucky. Then the supporters felt betrayed and they came under our windows. But it happens. The reasons for departure, we will tell them later (smiles, editor's note). It was a beautiful marriage, with crises as in all couples, then a separation. It was the same when he left Santos and Barcelona. But you saw how it was received in Santos for his return? If he returned to the park, he would probably be applauded. In life, you can get married on a thunderbolt. But after a while, passion fades. And when we separate, we stay good friends. I think this is our case with PSG. No one can erase what we have done for PSG, and Neymar does not want to erase his story with the club“Said the father of the Brazilian star.
Criticized for his lifestyle outside of the field, Neymar Jr. was often the target of unjust accusations according to his father, who firmly defends his professionalism while welcoming the progress made by PSG during their collaboration: “You have to stop believing that it is carnival every night. In the field, he is professional. Outside, it's his life. It goes out when it is the holidays or when it is off. The injuries did not come because he went out with girls. Do you think he got the crusaders because he played poker? I was happy! I congratulated Nasser (Al-Khelaïfi), a friend. We were part of this project. Nasser knows that we climbed the mountain together. This is where you see the time it takes to structure a club and to find the right formula. They built a new training center, invested in young players, a new staff. Today, all players want to sign. Before, they wanted to go to go to a larger club ”. Despite the ups and downs, Neymar Sr. keeps a positive image of the Parisian adventure, seen as a key step in his son's career. Today back to Santos, Neymar Jr. turns a page without denying what he experienced at PSG, between ambition, injuries and shared passion.
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