15 Aug 2023

Neymar heading to Saudi Arabia

5:39 am on 15 August 2023
Neymar Jr celebrates at Paris Saint-Germain

Neymar Jr celebrates Paris Saint-Germain Photo: PHOTOSPORT

Paris St-Germain have agreed a deal to sell Brazil forward Neymar to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal for about $164 million plus add-ons.

The transfer is subject to the 31-year-old completing a medical and all necessary paperwork.

Neymar, who joined PSG for a world-record fee of $425m in 2017, was left out of their squad for the Ligue 1 draw against Lorient at the weekend.

He was not part of coach Luis Enrique's plans for the new season.

His exit also fits PSG's strategy of moving away from the 'Galacticos' era of signing high-profile players for big fees and significant wages, with Lionel Messi also leaving the club earlier this year.

Neymar was understood to be earning in the region of $46m annually at the French side.

He will reportedly be paid $274m a year in Saudi Arabia - six times the amount he earned at PSG.

The Brazilian made 173 appearances for PSG, helping the club win 13 trophies, including five Ligue 1 titles, as well as reaching the 2020 Champions League final.

However, his time in the French capital has also been hampered by a number of ankle injuries.

The former Barcelona player had surgery in March that caused him to miss the rest of the season and he only resumed training in July.

Brazil's forward Neymar celebrates after scoring against Croatia in the Qatar 2022 World Cup quarter-final.

Neymar at the World Cup Photo: AFP

He missed two of Brazil's matches at the 2022 World Cup after being injured in their opening group game.

The forward also missed the 2019 Copa America after suffering torn ligaments in his right ankle and was out for several weeks in 2021 with a similar injury.

News of the Neymar deal comes just 24 hours after PSG's Kylian Mbappe was reintegrated back into first-team training after positive talks with the club.

The France forward, 24, had been in a contract stand-off amid a desire to join Real Madrid but could now extend his contract at PSG, with his current deal due to expire next year.

If completed, the Neymar deal will continue a remarkable summer spending spree by Saudi clubs, underlining the league's ambition to be one of the top competitions in the world in the next few years.

The likes of Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, Jordan Henderson, Ruben Neves, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino have all moved to Saudi Arabia.

Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr from Manchester United in January.

This story was first published by the BBC