Lionel Messi and Neymar clash over a generation signing for Barcelona and the board now find themselves in a tight situation
The president of Barcelona has turned his attention towards reinforcing the backline for the upcoming season after the recent injury that Samuel Umtiti picked up while training. With the French defender sidelined, Quique Setien is only left with Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet who are the only two experienced centre-backs in the squad, Jean-Clair Todibo and Ronald Araujo are still inexperienced to act as replacement defender.
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Josep Maria Bartomeu has shortlisted Serie A’s best performing defender from Lazio, Luiz Felipe. The Brazilians contribution in the defence for Lazio has helped the Italian underdogs reach the second position on the table and have the least goals scored against.
Luiz Felipe is physicality is outstanding, the Lazio defender is known for his pace, strength, and his composed style of distributing the ball from the defence onto the midfield. Don Balon claims that the president of the Catalan club believes in the player’s capability and that he would not turn out to be a disappointment as many believe that he is a one-season wonder.
The defender is valued at less than 40 million euros by the Lazio board and Josep Maria Bartomeu is eager on bringing the Brazilian on board to potentially replace the veteran defender, Gerard Pique. However, Lionel Messi is against the move as he believes that the 23-year-old lacks the experience and would crumble under the pressure that comes with being a player of Barcelona, although the player is young and has shown his quality in the Serie A, it would be too early to judge whether the player would fill in the boots of Gerard Pique.
As rare as it may sound, Barca has progressed with their negotiations over a possible return of Neymar, however, the Brazilian winger is adamant on the arrival of his compatriot from the Serie A before he signs the contract for his former club, according to Don Balon
The Catalan club find themselves in a tight situation as two of the most important players have clashed over a generational signing. Should the club fail to accommodate Neymar’s request, they risk missing out on a potential successor
Should Bartomeu listen to Lionel Messi’s opinion or Neymar’s?