Paris Saint-Germain prepared to match €222m buy-out clause for Barcelona star

Paris Saint-Germain have intimated they will match Neymar’s stunning €222m (£196.6m) release clause if he is willing to leave Barcelona this summer, reports MARCA.

Neymar wants to become the main man at Barcelona but knows that will never happen as long as close friend Lionel Messi remains at the club.

PSG have been desperate to sign Neymar or Cristiano Ronaldo in recent years and now they have made it clear they would even be willing to shatter the world record to land the Brazil international.

In addition to paying nearly £200m for the 25-year-old, PSG are also willing to hand Neymar a contract worth a €30m (£26.6m) a year, which would make him one of the highest paid players in the world.

PSG held talks with Neymar’s father 12 months ago about a summer move only for Neymar to turn down the chance to leave Spain and sign a new contract with Barcelona.

It remains to be seen whether Neymar is genuine about the prospect of leaving Barcelona or whether he is angling for a fresh contract in light of the new deal Messi signed earlier this month.

Neymar finished last season as the top WhoScored rated player in Europe’s top five leagues (8.52) after playing a direct hand in 24 goals (13 goals, 11 assists) in 30 appearances. Furthermore, Neymar also completed the most dribbles in Europe’s top leagues (168).

For more stats on Neymar, click here to visit his WhoScored player page