Neymar slams former Barca bosses
PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain’s world-record signing Neymar launched a scathing attack on his former club’s directors, saying “Barca deserve much better”.
The people in charge at the Catalan giant “are not the people who should be there, for the direction of Barca,” Neymar told reporters after scoring twice in his home debut as PSG thumped Toulouse 6-2 in Ligue 1 on Sunday.
“I want to speak the truth, I’m very sad with them,” said the Brazilian star who cost the Paris club a world-record $264 million to bolt from Barcelona.
“I spent four years there and I was very happy. At the start, I was happy. I spent four beautiful years there and I parted happy. But with them (the club’s directors), no.
“For me, they are not the people who should be there, for the direction of Barca,” said Neymar.
“Barca deserves much better and the whole world knows it.”
Despite securing the massive fee for Neymar, Barcelona is struggling to replace him before the transfer window closes.
The club has had bids in excess of $100 million for Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho and Dortmund’s Ousmane turned down.
And the club has been criticized for splashing out $47 million for Brazil midfielder Paulinho, who has spent two years at Chinese Super League champion Guangzhou Evergrande.
But Neymar said he could not comment on what the club was doing before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.
“I cannot speak now I am in another team. I don’t know what’s going on there, but I see my old teammates sad, and it’s that Dembele which makes me sad because I have a lot of friends there,” he said.
“I hope that things will improve for Barca and that they will become a team that can rival others.”
However, former Tottenham flop Paulinho’s arrival has not been warmly received by Barca fans at Camp Nou.
Over 80 percent of fans urged the club not to pay over $24 milfor Paulinho in a survey conducted by Barcelona sports daily Mundo Deportivo.
Uruguay and Argentina will officially launch their joint bid for the 2030 World Cup next week at a ceremony involving the country’s two leaders, Uruguay President Tabare Vazquez said on Monday.
Vazquez said the formal announcement of the bid would take place during a visit to Uruguay by his Argentine counterpart, Mauricio Macri, on Aug 30. The move coincides with Uruguay’s 2018 World Cup qualifier against Argentina in Montevideo on Aug 31.
The joint bid between the two South American neighbors had long been signaled.
Uruguay, which hosted the inaugural World Cup in 1930, is hoping to win the joint rights to mark the centenary of the event.
Both Uruguay and Argentina have won the World Cup twice before, with Uruguay taking the in 1930 and 1950.
Argentina won the tournament in 1978 on home soil, and again in Mexico in 1986.
South America last staged the World Cup in Brazil in 2014 and any bid for 2030 is likely to face stiff competition from the Asian region, where China is expected to be the frontrunner to stage the tournament.
The next World Cup takes place in Russia, with Qatar hosting the event in 2022.
A joint Canada-United States-Mexico bid is the favorite to win the 2026 tournament, with only one other country, Morocco, so far expressing an interest in entering the bidding race.
‘Feeling at home’
Meanwhile, Neymar said he already feels at home at PSG after scoring twice in a dazzling display in his second match for the French club.
In addition to his two goals in his first match at Parc des Princes, Neymar set up two more and won a penalty as 10-man PSG trounced Toulouse 6-2 move to take over spot in Ligue 1.
“I already feel at home here,” he told local media. “The team plays in the Brazilian style and this helps my integration.
“I love the atmosphere of the Parc des Princes. The fans supported us until the last minute.