- Neymar leaves PSG
- Has joined Al-Hilal in Saudi Pro League
- Shared brief hug with Mbappe amid tensions
WHAT HAPPENED? The Brazilian has made the move to the Middle East where he will earn a whopping €160m (£137m/$175m) over two seasons. Aside from the wages, he reportedly made a long list of demands which included a 25-room mansion, a swimming pool and sauna, nine cars and all expenses paid for travel, restaurants and hotels.
However, before leaving Paris, he made sure to say goodbye to each of his team-mates and coach Luis Enrique at Camp des Loges. He was also spotted exchanging a brief hug with a smiling Mbappe before passing through a tunnel of slaps. The video was shared from the official club handle with a caption that read: "Merci @neymarjr! A warm goodbye this morning at the PSG Campus between the Parisians and Neymar Jr!"
THE BIGGER PICTURE: It is alleged that Neymar shares a frosty relationship with Mbappe. Indeed, he liked a post on Instagram that carried a report from L'Equipe claiming that the French forward told PSG that there was 'no more room' for the pair to co-exist at the club. There were also claims made back in 2022 that Mbappe wanted Neymar, and as many as 13 other staff from the French club, axed, a story that the Frenchman was forced to publicly deny.
Incidentally, the day Neymar's transfer to Al-Hilal was formally announced by the club, Mbappe's ban was lifted and he was re-instated into the squad.
WHAT NEXT? Neymar will be looking to get into the action as quickly as possible following his switch to Al-Hilal and could possibly feature against Al-Feiha on Saturday evening in the Saudi Pro League. Meanwhile, Mbappe would hope to fire PSG to a victory against Toulouse in Ligue 1 on the same day, with the French side having struggled to a 0-0 draw in their opener without him.