Neymar’s dad and agent told a Spanish court investigating alleged tax fraud in his son’s signing by Barcelona that the player rejected a much higher offer from Real Madrid of €150 million.
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Barcelona initially said the signing of the 22-year-old player from Brazilian side Santos in May 2012 cost them €57.1 million.
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But after questions were raised about the deal by a Barcelona club member, the club in January revealed the deal was worth €86.2 million when including the player’s signing bonus, commission, marketing deals and other agreements.
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The club member, Jordi Cases, accused former Barcelona president Sandro Rossell of misappropriation for not declaring publicly that €40 million of the initial figure quoted by Barcelona was paid to N&N, a company controlled by Neymar’s parents.
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As a result Barcelona were indicted in February for tax fraud.
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During questioning at Madrid’s National Court on Wednesday, the player’s father, Neymar Da Silva Santos Sr, said Real offered €150 million for his son but the player preferred Barcelona’s offer because the Catalan side had a greater “international projection”, a court source said.
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He also told the court that his son’s contracts with Barcelona were all legal, the source added.
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While giving testimony in July, Rosell told the court that all contracts related to Neymar’s signing “were done perfectly” and respected the law.
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Rossell stepped down in January over the affair.
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In April, the Spanish league said it believed there was nothing irregular about the Neymar signing.
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Earlier this year Barcelona made a voluntary tax payment of €13.5 million to normalise the situation and avoid the club’s name being further tarnished.
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Neymar is back to full fitness after missing the World Cup semifinal and third-place playoff in his home country with a serious back injury picked up in the quarterfinal victory over Colombia.
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He made an excellent start to the 2014-15 season with the Catalan side, scoring six goals in five La Liga appearances this season.
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