Paris: Neymar, the world’s most expensive footballer, said on Friday that money was never the motivating factor in his record 222 million-euro ($264 million) transfer from Barcelona to Paris St Germain.
The Brazilian forward told a news conference on his arrival in the French capital that he was motivated by desire for a new challenge and said he wanted to make his debut on Saturday.
“I wanted a bigger challenge, and my heart made this decision and I followed my heart,” he told reporters at the Parc des Princes stadium.
“Money was never my motivation,” said the player who is reportedly being paid 45 million euros ($53 million) a year.
“I want to be happy, and I want my family to be happy. I’m really sad to hear that people think this way.
“If it was just about money, I could have gone somewhere else.
“Being the most expensive player in the world is not a burden. I weigh 69 kg. I don’t have a burden on me.”
Neymar denied that he had tired of playing second-fiddle to Lionel Messi at Barcelona.
“It’s not that I wanted to be the big star at Barcelona,” he said.
“That’s not what I’m looking for here. I’m looking for a new challenge, new trophies, and this is what motivates me.”
Club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who introduced the player as “an idol for the whole world”, backed up Neymar’s assertion that he could have gone elsewhere for more money.
PSG fans may only have to wait a few days to see if their new superstar player is worth the money.
“I can play tomorrow (against Amiens). Why not? I’ll speak to the staff, but I really want to play. I haven’t discussed where I will play. I will play where the coach wants me to.”
“I only stopped playing in the last two days and I’m hungry to play football.”
Neymar has also revealed that he chose to leave Barcelona against the advice of his father.
“A sportsman needs challenges. And for the second time in my life, I am going against the advice of my Dad,” the Brazilian wrote in a long post in Spanish on his Instagram account on Thursday night.
“Dad, I understand and respect your opinion, but my decision is taken, I ask that you support me as you always have done,” he added.
Neymar added that his family “has suffered a lot with problems that have occurred in this period of my career and deserve peace. It is a difficult decision, but one taken with the maturity of my 25 years.”
The player’s assurances could be seen as a way of hitting back at critics furious at his departure from Barcelona.
Catalan sports daily Sport described the player’s entourage as “toxic”, blaming them for Neymar’s departure.
Sport wrote of “the fatal intersection of two diabolical factors: the money of Qatar (which owns PSG via QSI, their sovereign wealth fund) and the monetary and sporting ambition of the Neymars.”
Neymar’s father is extremely close to his son, supervising his career and the negotiation of his contracts. He has become a celebrity in his own right, even appearing in an advert alongside his son, who had insisted upon arriving at Barcelona that his shirt should carry the name “Neymar Jr”.
Father and son are set to go on trial in Spain following an investigation into the player’s transfer to Barcelona from Brazilian side Santos in 2013.
“I have accepted the offer from PSG to try to help the club win the titles the fans want. They presented to me an audacious career plan and I think I am ready for it,” added Neymar on Instagram.
Of his four years at Camp Nou, he added: “I have won everything a sportsman can win. I have experienced unforgettable moments.”
However, there has been criticism of the sums involved.
FIFpro, the worldwide union of professional footballers, said the deal illustrated much of what wrong with the sport.
“Football is ever more the domain of a select group of rich, mostly European-based clubs,” FIFPro general secretary Theo van Seggelen said in a statement.
“Football’s enormous wealth is trapped within a few leagues and clubs when it could be redistributed more efficiently and fairly to help protect competitive balance.
“The transfer rules governed by Fifa are anti-competitive, unjustified and illegal.”
Arsenal’s French manager, Arsene Wenger, linked in the past with a move to PSG, said player valuations were “beyond calculation and beyond rationality”.
(Agencies)
