The “MNM”, stop or again?
After another failure in the knockout stages of the Champions League, the fifth in seven years, PSG finds itself faced with this question.
Sportingly or financially, the supposedly magical trio seems to pose more problems than it provides solutions, as former Parisian doorman Jérôme Alonzo recently pointed out on
Amazon Prime Video
.
“
We all knew it was impossible with Neymar, Messi and Mbappé.
Everyone knew it except for a person or two in the upper echelons of the club.
So they sold shirts, well done.
PSG is a globally recognized brand, congratulations.
There's a store in New York, well done.
But sportingly, with these three, it couldn't work
he said, summing up a widely shared opinion.
Except that it will not be easy to turn the page.
Especially for the "N" of the "MNM".
According to
The Athletic
, confirming the indiscretions of
L'Équipe
in recent days, Neymar Jr has no desire to leave Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
In fact, the 31-year-old Brazilian international (124 caps, 77 goals) "
wishes to end his career at PSG
" and win the Champions League there.
Remember that “Ney”, recruited in 2017 for a record amount of €222 million, is under contract until 2027 in Paris.
He will be 35 at that time.
"
As things stand, he does not plan to represent another team
," it added.
Neymar in the infirmary, Messi in the waiting room
According to various sources, Paris-SG already tried to exfiltrate Neymar last summer, without success.
With a long-term contract and a (very) substantial salary, it's not easy to find a base that suits the former Barça star… We talked about Chelsea.
There was talk of the Newcastle track, passed under the Saudi flag, or a hypothetical return to Camp Nou.
In any case, his new injury will not help attract potential buyers.
Victim of a sprained right ankle on February 19, "Ney" was operated on Friday in Qatar.
He is back in Paris but will not return to competition until next season.
If his entourage is careful not to give a calendar, the club invites to think that he will not be on the grounds of
“, he who therefore missed the return match against Bayern in C1 (2-0 defeat) and who has only played half of the meetings with PSG since 2017 due to various injuries.
Read alsoPSG: autopsy of yet another fiasco
As for the other two thieves of the “MNM”, Paris is crossing its fingers that Kylian Mbappé still sees his future on the banks of the Seine, the latter having only one year of contract left.
His patience is already tested... For Leo Messi, free in June, the Argentinian daily
Olé
assures that he wants to compete in the C1 next year, in order to arrive fresh and ready for the Copa America in the United States in 2024 , and that he currently only speaks to PSG.
Biographer of the sevenfold Ballon d'Or, Guillaume Balague was already giving this trend in recent days in our columns.
He even mentioned an "
agreement in principle
" which has yet to be finalized on paper and the fact that "
(Messi's) priority is still to stay in Paris
".
A priori, it is especially the club of the capital which slows down in the negotiations.
For Neymar, a priori, things are clear.
It's up to Luis Campos to find a solution or… to Christophe Galtier to put up with it on the meadow.