BARCELONA — Barcelona vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu said on Monday the signing of Brazilian international Neymar has cost the club €57 million. Reuters
The 21-year-old was officially paraded as a Barca player at the Camp Nou earlier on Monday after the club reached an agreement with his old club Santos and the player himself last month.
And Bartomeu ended speculation about how much the Spanish champions had paid for Neymar, although he refused to specify how much each of the parties involved in the deal had received individually on confidentiality grounds.
As well as Santos, investment companies DIS and Teisa, who owned part of the player’s economic rights were bought by Barca.
“Barcelona have all the sporting and economic rights of the player,” he told a Press conference.
“This operation, at a cost of 57 million euros, has been done without intermediaries or agents just with the four companies involved.”
Of the 57 million, Barca had already paid 10 last year in anticipation of sealing the deal for around 40 million euros in total.
However, Bartomeu admitted the late interest shown by rivals Real Madrid and another club had made the deal more expensive.
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“The operation has been made more expensive due to the interest of other clubs that interfered in the signing of Neymar.
“It was forseen that Neymar would arrive in 2014. To bring the move forward we have had to pay this 17 million euros more.”
Bartomeu also confirmed as part of the deal Barca will play two friendlies against Santos, with one taking place at the Camp Nou and the other in Brazil, whilst the player’s buyout clause will be 190 million euros.
The player himself meanwhile reflected on what he described as a “dream” move. “I am realising my lifelong dream, the dream to play with players that I have admired my whole life,” he said.
