The Brazil star continues to be linked with a return to Barcelona and a Parc des Princes colleague feels he should be able leave if he so desires
Marco Verratti has suggested Paris Saint Germain not to stand in the way of Neymar’s proposed switch to Barcelona, insisting that the club “must not keep a player who wants to leave”.
Neymar joined the French champions for a world record £200 million ($246m) fee in the summer of 2017, ending a trophy-laden four-year spell at Camp Nou.
The 27-year-old made the transition from La Liga to Ligue 1 seamlessly, but his first full season at the club was cut short by a metatarsal injury.
The Brazil international was also unable to complete the 2018-19 campaign in its entirety, suffering a re-occurrence of the same injury back in January.
Neymar returned to action in time to play a part in a French Cup final against Rennes, but PSG lost the match on penalties and he was hit with a ban for striking a supporter when going up to collect his runners’ up medal .
The mercurial winger’s attitude has been called into question on a number of other occasions and rumours of a return to Barcelona have emerged as a result.
Verratti does not wish to see Neymar leave Parc des Princes but feels PSG should sanction his departure if he no longer wants to be in the French capital.
“When a player really wants to leave, the club must let him go, according to the conditions set by the club, of course,” the Italy midfielder told RMC Sport .
“But you must not keep a player who wants to leave. Of course, I would be disappointed to see him go.
“I never heard him say that he wanted to leave, after I don’t know what he told the club. But personally, of course, I prefer to see him stay.”
Neymar’s Camp Nou homecoming has reportedly been on the agenda since late last year , but PSG want to make all the money back on their initial investment.
There has been some suggestion that Barca will include multiple players in any official offer for the Brazilian, but the club may be short on funds after a summer of lucrative spending.
The Spanish champions have already forked out a whopping £215 million ($265m) on new players during the current window, with the likes of Antoine Griezmann and Frenkie de Jong now on Ernesto Valverde’s books.
PSG meanwhile, are still chasing targets of their own, as Thomas Tuchel looks to build a team capable of challenging for the Champions League next term.
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