Neymar’s father and agent has denied receiving €10m Barcelona paid in advance to sign a pre-contract agreement with the Catalans.
DIS have claimed that Barca’s widely believed move in November 2011 to sign the Brazilian star, then at Santos, to a pre-contract agreement for a fee of €10m, went against FIFA regulations.
Barca confirmed the upfront payment as part of a total €57m spend to bring Neymar to the Camp Nou this summer, but apparently neither the player nor his father received it.
“That money was to buy DIS’ share, but it did not work because they did not want to sell,” Neymar Snr explained to reporters this week.
“They always put the negotiations into difficulties. The interest of Barcelona was there, yes, but we did not receive anything in advance.
“I do not know what happened to that money.”
Globoesporte claim that the money was indeed intended to buy DIS’ 40 per cent share held in the player, but in their refusal to sell, it was frozen and handed to trusted Barca aide Andre Cury.
Then it was used as expenses during the Catalans’ eventual negotiations to sign Neymar and included as part of the total spend to secure the player.
