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BARCELONA

Barça could be bluffing over Neymar to appease Messi

Le Parisien claim Barcelona could be bluffing over their interest in Neymar in an effort to appease Lionel Messi, the club's captain and talisman.

Update:
PARIS, FRANCE - AUGUST 17: Neymar Jr warms up during a Paris Saint-Germain training session at Centre Ooredoo on August 17, 2019 in Paris, France. (Photo by Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images)
Aurelien MeunierGetty Images

Barcelona, still reeling from their loss against Athletic Bilbao on Friday night, refuse to give up on Neymar and will present a new offer to Paris Saint Germain this week despite the distance between what they are currently offering and what the French side want for the player according to Le Parisien.

The newspaper say Barcelona will make an improved offer for the Brazilian but they are unsure as to what that offer will consist of. Philippe Coutinho, who was considered a key part of any potential deal, is on his way to Bayern and Barcelona will have to come up with a different proposal now to PSG's liking.

PSG have accepted the idea of selling their star player to Barcelona in exchange for players. They are also demanding €100 million along with the inclusion of players - Coutinho and Dembélé sat atop their wishlist. Tuchel, the club's manager, and PSG, know Dembélé wants to stay at Barcelona as that option looks remote.

Barcelona could be bluffing over Neymar

The French publiation also speculate that Barcelona's directors are bluffing in an effort to appease Messi. The Argentine captain and leader of the team wants Neymar back in Barcelona and has applied pressure to make it happen. Barcelona would also like Neymar to publicly express his desire to wear the blaugrana shirt again.

People in Neymar's corner have been repeating this message since the start of May but the player himself has never said it. PSG have been saying that not only is Neymar part of the team but has a contract for three years and will stay if the right offer does not arrive.

Tuchel says he believes a strong PSG team is one with Neymar in it despite leaving him out of the squad for the second league game in a row. He wants to protect him and defend him in an effort to get the fans back on his side. As far as Real Madrid talks go, both Le Parisien and L'Equipe say talks have not stopped between los Blancos and Neymar's representative, Pini Zahavi.