Reports out of Spain and Brazil put the transfer fee that Barcelona paid for Neymar at a mouth-watering €72m!
The transfer fee is reported to have broken down this way:
- €32m as a transfer fee going to Santos to then be split with the two investment funds that also part-owned the player
- €40m to Neymar and his father as a signing on fee. That is in addition to the €10m they received as part of a pre-contract agreement signed last summer.
This apparently was more than Barcelona had expected to pay, but a late offer from bitter rivals Real Madrid forced Barca to raise their offer.
And even then, their offer was less than what Real Madrid offered. Reports in Spain say that Real Madrid President Florentino Pérez offered €100 million for the Santos star. That was to be split €30m for Santos, €10 for Barcelona (to cover the amount they had already paid Neymar’s father) and €60 to Neymar as a signing fee.
Real had also reportedly offered to pay €40 million more if Barcelona had then sued the father of the star for failing to fulfil his agreement.
So despite Real Madrid willing to go as high as €140 million to bring Neymar to the Bernabéu, the Brazilian went with the club that had wooed him the longest; FC Barcelona.
Heading into the summer, Barcelona said their summer transfer budget was €50 million. Obviously the Neymar deal blew that amount, and more, so expect an exodus of players from the Camp Nou as Barcelona raises funds to address its other needs, mainly at center half and goalkeeper.
What do you think of the Neymar deal? Is it a good signing for Barcelona? How will he fit in with Messi and Xavi and Iniesta?
