Until Neymar officially signs a contract extension with Barcelona, interest will come from opposing teams. Neymar is considered the next-best star of soccer, and several clubs are hoping to pull him away from Barcelona and have him lead somewhere else. For now, Barcelona is confident that they can easily retain Neymar for the future, regardless of what team comes calling.
Manchester United has been linked to Neymar. Manchester City has also been linked to the Brazilian. Now, Real Madrid is circling the rumor mill as they create a short-list of players to target during the summer transfer window. Real is starting to build a team that can compete following the eventual departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, and Neymar is their top target.
Real Madrid's season has not gone as planned. They are out of the running for a La Liga title while remaining alive in Champions League. They are hoping to boost their roster this summer with several marquee players on their wish list. Alongside Neymar, David De Gea, Eden Hazard and John Stones are getting looks from Los Blancos. Despite the interest, Barcelona is making it clear that Neymar is staying put.
"I made it very clear a fortnight ago, and I'll say it again now, Neymar will be staying here and there'll be no issues," Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez said. "He will stay at Barcelona. I'd be concerned about it if he wasn't happy, but that is clearly not the case. I'm saying outright: he will stay at Barca."
There were reports that Neymar agreed to a new five-year contract with Barcelona that would make him the second highest-paid player outside of Lionel Messi. That got plenty of Barcelona fans excited at the prospect that Neymar was locked in through 2021. However, his father pumped the brakes on the report, saying that no contract had been agreed upon, but that the two sides were negotiating a deal that could happen in the near future.
"We are relaxed with all that we are doing at Barcelona and I believe the club are too," Neymar Sr. said. "We will speak with [Barca president Josep Maria] Bartomeu in May and come up with a path for Neymar and Barca to take together."
For now, Barcelona is more concerned about the summer plans of Neymar. The Brazilian wants to play for his country this summer for both Copa American and the summer Olympics, for which his country is the host. While Neymar is determined to play in both competitions, there is push back from Barcelona. Manager Luis Enrique stressed that he will have a discussion with Brazil boss Dunga in order to come up with the best plan. Barcelona needs Neymar if they intend on winning a La Liga title and Champions League title this summer.
"We haven't met yet, we'll be meeting shortly," Enrique said. "I'm not that worried about it, I'm worried about the game. I'll listen to what Dunga wants and think about the best thing for Rafinha as well, who's also in the Olympics squad. Dani Alves as well. But we want to work for the best of the players, we want them to be fit. That's what we're going to talk about. My job is sometimes not to let people know what I think. What we have in common is wanting the best for Neymar."
