Neymar asks for another opportunity in Spain

Fed up of hanging on Messi's coattails, Neymar wanted to fly all on his own and so he left Barcelona for Paris Saint Germain with aspirations of making his successes his own as the biggest star in Paris. PSG, for their part, were ready to elevate themselves into the upper echelon of European football and become a beacon of success on the continent. Well, for the moment, it hasn't quite happened, despite the fact that Neymar teamed up with Mbappé in the French capital, who has a massive future ahead of him and with Cavani already in place, an enormous stiker in his own right. The greatest teams, like the greatest dishes are cooked with time and heat, not with massive handfuls of ingredients. It seems, now, that Neymar notices this and is starting to show his concern.

Until recently, he was seen as the man who would eventually break the duopoly of Messi and Cristiano (or vice-versa) for the Ballon d'Or. But that break is coming and Griezmann, Modric, Mbappé and Hazard are better placed than the Brazilian...that's one side of the story. The other is that he left Barcelona in order to be far away from the shadow that Messi casts over the Camp Nou but now he seems trapped by the emerging figure that is Mbappé as he turns himself into a national treasure. 'Liberté, Egalité', Mbappé' read plenty of shirts sold there. With all of his artistry, Neymar never turned into the flag-bearing player at the club where he is. He disputes this role with Mbappé who, on top of everything, is even younger than him.

And he sees himself in Spain again, and it could happen for €220 million in 2019 and for less in the years to come. What once seem like a barbaric amount of money doesn't seem like that much now, as the world of football continues to see inflation that doesn't show signs of tiring. What was paid for Dembélé, Coutinho or for the youngsters Vinicius and Rodrygo, €220 million looks reasonable. Mbappé is owned by PSG (i.e Qatar) and is therefore untouchable and Madrid and Barcelona will have to accept that.