Neymar, 27, was desperate to return to Barca after becoming increasingly unsettled with life at Paris Saint-Germain.
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The Independent claim the LaLiga giants worked hard to broker a deal to bring the Brazilian superstar back to Spain, but neither them nor Real Madrid had the necessary funds to match PSG’s £200million asking price.
Therefore, any transfer was dependent on players going in the opposite direction as part of a player-plus-cash deal, with three Barca stars lined up for moves to the French capital.