Florentino Perez reactivates Real Madrid's interest in Neymar
Los Blancos have wanted to sign the Brazilian since 2011
Florentino Perez is back on Neymar's trail. As much as the Real Madrid president plays dumb, the Brazilian is still a target for the club.
Barcelona have been informed of their rival's desire to do an extremely complicated deal, but have confidence that Neymar himself will snub their advances.
As has been the case with Josep Maria Bartomeu, Perez also wants to avoid admitting in public any interest in the player.
Madrid first tried to sign Neymar 2011, but he chose Barça, moving to Camp Nou in 2013. They even tried to sign him during his spell at Barcelona, too, albeit unsuccessfully.
Neymar wants to return to Camp Nou, as he has told Paris Saint-Germain. Perez knows that but also knows that PSG would rather sell to Madrid. Los Blancos want to play that to their advantage. That's why they have re-established contact with Neymar's people.
With Madrid's season a failure, Perez marked two objectives: the return of Zinedine Zidane as coach, which happened quickly, and convincing Neymar to come.
Contact with Neymar's father existed until the end of May, but were abandoned by Madrid when they couldn't reach an agreement with the player (something Barça have managed).
Beyond his performances on the pitch, Perez sees the huge advantages of Neymar on a marketing level. He would have similar consequences to the Galacticos, something Eden Hazard cannot offer. Madrid see him taking the place of Cristiano Ronaldo, something no one has managed since the Portuguese forward left.
Perez's tactic is to wait and see how negotiations go between PSG and Barça, until the market is nearly closed. He knows he will get a chance and will try to exploit it.
His confidence lies in two reasons: 1) in contrast to Barcelona, he doesn't need to include a player in the deal and 2) PSG chief Al-Khelaifi has not forgiven Barcelona for trying to sign various PSG players (Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Verratti, Rabiot) or for the 6-1 humiliation they dealt them in the Champions League.
But Madrid must convince Neymar, who at the moment is only thinking of returning to Barcelona. Perez will offer more money than the Catalans and leave it in the player's hands.
