Marco Verratti tells PSG to let Neymar go if Barcelona come calling
PSG midfielder Marco Verratti has told the club not to stand in Neymar’s way if he wants to leave.
The Brazilian has been linked with a move back to Barcelona this summer, two years after his world record €222 million move from the Camp Nou.
"It's between him and the club," Verratti said to RMC Sport, as reported by Marca.
"Although the club mustn't try to keep a player that realistically wants to leave.
"According to the conditions put in place by the club, of course, but you don't keep a player that wants to leave.
"I'd prefer that Neymar stays with us. I've never heard him say that he wants to leave. But I don't know what he's said to the club.
"It would be disappointing to see him go, but he suffered his latest injury in [Brazil] and went through difficult moments in his personal life."
Verratti himself was linked with a move to Barcelona in 2017 and explained how his stay in Paris came about.
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He said: "At the time, I needed explanations from PSG, because I'd seen things that weren't appropriate for a club that wants to win big trophies. Now I'm glad that I stayed."
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Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.
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