Neymar bids Paris adieu with Saudi switch

Brazilian agrees Al-Hilal move as PSG welcomes Mbappe back to squad after 'positive' talks with contract rebel

PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar has reportedly agreed a two-year deal to join Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal.

France's leading sports daily L'Equipe said on its website on Sunday that the PSG and Brazil forward will receive a total of 160 million euros ($175 million) over two seasons, with the option for a third year.

On Monday, the BCC reported that the deal was subject to the player completing his medical. The BBC reported the transfer fee to be about 90 million euros plus add-ons.

Neymar was contracted to stay at PSG until 2025. He has scored 118 goals in 173 appearances, capturing five Ligue 1 titles but missing out on Champions League glory with PSG.

Neymar missed PSG's season-opening 0-0 draw against Lorient in the French league on Saturday after training alone on Friday, with the club saying it was because he was recovering from a viral infection. But Neymar is heading for a PSG exit and could leave during the summer transfer window.

The 31-year-old Brazilian joined PSG from Barcelona for a world-record fee of 222 million euros (now $244 million) six years ago, the same year Kylian Mbappe joined from Monaco in a deal worth 180 million euros.

PSG had already received a world-record $332 million bid from Al-Hilal for Mbappe, who is in the last year of his contract and has been mired in a contract standoff. Mbappe, who reportedly refused to meet with representatives from the Saudi club when they were in Paris last month, has been strongly linked with a move to Real Madrid next season on a free transfer.

Tensions between Mbappe and PSG eased a little on Sunday after he was allowed to return to training following "constructive and positive talks" between the two parties.

Al-Hilal has traditionally been one of Saudi Arabia's top clubs and has been crowned Asian Champions League winner on four occasions.

Euro imports

It is coached by Portugal's Jorge Jesus, who is in his second spell at the club, while the squad currently boasts four international players recently lured from European clubs — Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Neymar's Brazilian compatriot Malcom.

Neymar's departure from PSG follows that of Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, who now plays for Inter Miami in the United States.

In a sign of the growing impact of the Saudis in world soccer, Roberto Mancini was reported on Sunday to be the man lined up to become the manager of the country's national team after his shock resignation from European champion Italy.

It has been a rocky build-up to the new Ligue 1 season for defending champion PSG with both Mbappe and Neymar left out of new coach Luis Enrique's team for Saturday's underwhelming opening goalless draw against Lorient.

After being sidelined for several weeks amid an ongoing contract dispute, Mbappe watched from the Parc des Princes stands.

But the club's prize asset is now back in the fold, for the time being at least, PSG revealed on Sunday.

"After very constructive and positive discussions between Paris Saint-Germain and Kylian Mbappe before the PSG-Lorient match, the player was reinstated in first-team training this morning," PSG said.

Contract standoff

France captain Mbappe refused to sign an extension to his PSG deal this summer, meaning he can leave for free next year, with Real Madrid long understood to be his preferred destination.

Qatari-owned PSG wants to sell him now to bring in a significant transfer fee.

"The position is very clear. If Kylian wants to stay, he must sign a new contract. We can't let the best player in the world today leave for free. It's impossible," PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said last month.

Mbappe had not been allowed to train with the first team and played only one of PSG's five warm-up games and was not invited to the preseason tour in Japan and South Korea.

He sat alongside fellow 2018 World Cup winner Ousmane Dembele, who completed his transfer from Barcelona earlier on Saturday, as Luis Enrique handed debuts to six players against Lorient. PSG returns to Ligue 1 action against Toulouse on Saturday.

AFP