Neymar’s father has said that his son’s decision to leave Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain “took me by surprise,” but he left the Camp Nou to get exit his comfort zone.
“Neymar’s decision to come to Paris took me by surprise,” Neymar Sr. told French TV show Telefoot.
“We had an offer last year but we didn’t reach an agreement. This time PSG’s offer was very interesting. The idea of winning the Champions League and the league pleased him.
“The truth is that it was me who hesitated until the last moment. I said to Neymar that ‘you’re relaxed, you’re in your comfort zone at Barcelona. So the best choice for you is to stay.’ But he wanted to get out of [his comfort zone] and put himself in danger.
“His friends [Lionel] Messi, [Luis] Suarez, [Ivan] Rakitic and [Gerard] Pique all tried to hold on to him. It was very difficult but Neymar really wanted to come. He wanted this challenge and we supported him.”
“The controversy with Cavani was exaggerated,” Neymar Sr. added. “They’re great players. We saw against Bayern Munich [3-0 win in in the Champions League] that there wasn’t a problem.
“In every club there are disagreements sometimes — it’s necessary. But this affair was blown out of proportion. There’s no need to talk about it any longer.”
“If Neymar is to win the Ballon d’Or, he will win it,” Neymar Snr said. “But I don’t think that he absolutely wants it. If he really wanted to win it, he would have stayed at Barcelona because he had everything at this club.
“That’s not what motivated him to come to Paris — it was the team. We knew already that — but for a few details — PSG could have already won the Champions League.
“We signed a contract for five years so we have five years to win the Champions League. PSG’s project with Neymar is starting at the moment and it’s proof that PSG are on the right track.”
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