“They were all my friends” - Neymar points at desire to play with 4 ex-PSG stars as reason why he refused to stay with Lionel Messi at Barcelona

Brazil legend Neymar has explained why he decided to join Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and leave Lionel Messi's Barcelona in 2017. The Al Hilal attacker had then made a world record €222 million move from Barcelona to Paris.

However, he couldn't quite reach the highs he did at the Catalan club, failing to win the UEFA Champions League. In a recent interaction with another Brazilian legend, Romario, Neymar explained why he left Camp Nou, saying (via Fabrizio Romano):

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“I didn’t leave Barça to be the best in the world at PSG. Messi told me: why are you leaving? Do you want to be the best player in the world? I can make you the best player in the world.

“I told him no. It’s not that. It’s something personal. Obviously financially, it was better than what I had at Barcelona… and there were Brazilians there too. I wanted to play with the Brazilians. There was Thiago Silva, Dani Alves just signed, Marquinhos, Lucas Moura. They were all my friends.”

Four years after Neymar's move to Parc des Princes, Lionel Messi joined PSG as well. The duo spent another two years together in Ligue 1 before leaving the club in the 2023 summer transfer window.

While Messi joined Inter Miami on a free transfer, Neymar moved to the Saudi Pro League to join Al Hilal in a €90 million move. While the Argentine has had a fairly successful stint in Miami, winning two trophies, the latter has struggled with injuries, making just seven appearances for them in 18 months.

How many matches did Lionel Messi and Neymar play together?

Neymar and Lionel Messi first joined forces at Barcelona in 2013, with the Brazilian joining as the most sought-after player in world football. They played four seasons together for the Catalan giants, forming a lethal attacking trio alongside Luis Suarez.

At Barca, the duo won two LaLiga titles and a UEFA Champions League, among other honors, before parting ways in 2017 with Neymar's departure. The duo then reunited in 2021 in Paris and won two Ligue 1 seasons together.

In all, they shared the pitch in 206 matches, combining for 67 goals and winning 149 of those games.

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