Forget about Neymar in 2020, we aren't interested

The Neymar transfer saga didn't end well for Barça. It went on for too long, a lot of effort was used and the negotiations still ended up counting for nothing. The Brazilian international wanted a Camp Nou return but PSG did everything possible to block that from happening. It was a question of pride and they don't want to 'lose' to Barça in any way. This bad blood between the team stems from previous attempts to sign Marquinhos, speaking with Verratti's behind PSG's back and most recently Adrien Rabiot.  

Bartomeu once went to Doha to meet the Sheikh, this when the Qatar Foundation were sponsors at Barça, and he was unhappy with the criticism of the Qatar state in the Spanish media. They believe the club didn't do all it could to avoid Qatar being labelled a dictatorship, where freedom didn't exist and poor foreign workers were treated as slaves. When that contract ended, so too did the relationship between the two parties.

When you take into account the poor relationship between Barça and PSG, we don't understand why Bartomeu didn't rule out making a future move for Neymar in his most recent interview. He left the door open for another attempt in 2020 which didn't make sense and only increases the likelihood of rumours throughout the next 12 months. Bartomeu only dismissed the possibility of signing Neymar in January, but another move could be planned from February onwards. It seems unwise to revisit this transfer saga again. Neymar is yesterday's news and his best years came at the Camp Nou before fitness issues became a problem. 

There are two important reasons for why Barça shouldn't reconsider a move for Neymar in 2020. One, he'll be 28 (and a half) years old and his main ambition will be to win the World Cup with Brazil, which take places in Qatar. And secondly, his price tag is also fixed at €170m. When you add the fee to his probable wage demands, it brings the cost up to around €350m. To pay that for a 28-year-old would be a horrible deal and seriously harm the project being built at Barça.

The club needs tranquillity, hard work and strong spirit. It's important Valverde gets the maximum out of this young team which has been assembled. Find a place for Griezmann, get Dembele back to his best and build the midfield around De Jong. All this with Messi directing traffic further up the field. Let's forget about Neymar as living with nostalgia isn't good. It's the past. But if you want to look towards the future, focus on Mbappe rather than Neymar.