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Lionel Messi and Barcelona president at crossroads over splendid transfer

By Atharva Khadilkar

NAPLES, ITALY - FEBRUARY 25: Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona in action during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between SSC Napoli and FC Barcelona at Stadio San Paolo on February 25, 2020 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Pedro Salado/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)
NAPLES, ITALY - FEBRUARY 25: Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona in action during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between SSC Napoli and FC Barcelona at Stadio San Paolo on February 25, 2020 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Pedro Salado/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images) /
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Barcelona are tipped to have a spending galleria heading into the summer, but not everything may go as planned in the club’s offices.

Barcelona secured a draw against Napoli in their first leg clash of the Champions League’s round of 16 stage to take home an away goal, three weeks ahead of their return tie. The Catalans owe credit to Antoine Griezmann, who was the first Barca player to score a Champions League away goal in the knockouts since Neymar in 2015 other than Messi.

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While the Camp Nou is obviously a fortress for the Blaugrana, things will be difficult for them considering that Gerard Pique walked off with an injury. Moreover, the likes of Sergio Busquets and Arturo Vidal will be suspended and hence, unavailable for selection at Quique Setien’s disposal. Messi, who didn’t play too well on Tuesday will need to perform well.

As such, the Argentina international is aware of the fact that the club is not competitive enough to win the Champions League at this stage and has thus been pushing them into signing Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain. Don Balon has now claimed that the Barca ace and president Josep Maria Bartomeu are at barneys over the Brazilian’s arrival.

Lionel Messi clearly feels that Neymar is the rightful heir to him at Barcelona, but Bartomeu thinks otherwise and believes that it is not fruitful to bring back a player that left the club on bad terms for a fee that could exceed 200 million euros. With that said, it is doubtful whether Neymar himself is as desperate to return to Barca as he initially was.

Kylian Mbappe has been tipped to move to Real Madrid sooner or later, and that would see Neymar being the undisputed star at the Parc des Princes. Additionally, following last summer’s antiques, the Brazilian publicly apologized to the fans and the board of directors so all signs could well be pointing towards the winger staying in the Ligue 1 for longer.

Next. Gerard Pique vetoes Barcelona's approach for his successor. dark

Where do you see Neymar playing following this upcoming summer’s transfer window?

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