Only three months ago it seemed that Paris Saint-Germain decided to get rid of Neymar.
No one at the club said so officially, but when President Nasser Al-Khalaifi was interviewed by the newspaper "Le Parisien", he more than hinted at it.
"Our motto is to dream big, but we also have to be realistic. We don't want to be flashy, bling-bling. The era of sparkles is over," said the Qatari president of the luxury club, "We want players who love the team, who love to fight. This is the mentality that needs to prevail in the club".
The interviewer did not let up and asked, does Neymar have a future at PSG?
"What I can say is that we expect all the players to do much more than they did last season. Much more," was the answer.
Neymar internalized the message.
Neymar.
The face of the message, photo: AFP
He understood that he had to change his attitude, because if he didn't, not only would he find himself outside the team - but he would also jeopardize his World Cup dream.
Neymar is already 30 years old. The World Cup in Qatar, which will open in a little more than two months, may be his last, that is, the last chance to become a world champion, and for him this is the most important thing.
He realized that he had no choice but to focus exclusively on football, to be a true professional and to reach the World Cup at the peak of his fitness.
We saw the change in PSG's preparation games in Japan, in July.
Neymar was sharp, fast and deadly, very different from the player we saw last season.
He also looks lighter and in great physical shape.
According to estimates, he reduced between three and four kilograms of his weight.
Neymar.
Crazy hatching ability, photo: Alan Shiver
What a difference from last season, which was the worst of his career: he scored only 13 goals, the fewest ever, and was busy with fights, predictions and just plain nonsense.
The elimination in the round of 16 of the Champions League against Real Madrid was another huge blow to the deteriorating reputation of the Brazilian.
Bad news for Bacher
And let's not forget the money.
Five years ago, Neymar became the most expensive footballer in history, when PSG bought him from Barcelona for 222 million euros.
It is doubtful that this record will be broken soon.
His contract is also heavy: 38 million euros net per year, an amount that is guaranteed to him until the age of 35!
When Neymar was purchased in the summer of 2017, he arrived with the stated goal of leading Paris to win the Champions League, and also to get out of Leo Messi's shadow, with an undisguised ambition to win the Ballon d'Or.
Both things did not happen, and Neymar, who was the symbol of PSG at the beginning of his career in the team, became a problem - especially in light of the rise of the new idol, Kylian Mbappe.
Mbappe and Neymar.
In the meantime, everything is fine, photo: AFP
Then, a year ago, Messi arrived, seemingly a tremendous reinforcement, but what actually happened was that the trio of stars hardly helped in the defensive game, and coach Mauricio Pochettino was unable to control the chaos.
Al-Khalaifi realized that this could not continue.
Pochettino was replaced by Christophe Galtier, a coach less famous than the Argentine, but one who specializes in defensive play, which helped him lead Lille to the championship in 2021 at the expense of PSG.
The change for Neymar is amazing.
From a player who just wants to get rid of him, he has become the one who, according to many, is currently the best in the world, and yes, he also goes down and helps the defense.
Messi and Neymar.
Perfect collaboration, photo: Alan Shiver
The start of the current season is the best of his career.
In the first nine games, the Brazilian scored ten goals and set up another eight, mainly for Messi and Ambape.
It sounds like science fiction, but these are the numbers with which he reaches Sami Ofer: involvement in the goal every 39 minutes.
This is very bad news for Barak Becher, but for the lovers of beautiful football, there can be no better news than this.
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