Brazilian star Neymar Junior appears to be on his way out of Paris Saint-Germain, and not only does it seem like Saudi Arabia will be his destination, they may well have been his only option.
Neymar has reportedly given the green light to join Al Hilal on a two-year deal, which will see him take home around €200m in salary, and PSG make around €90m in transfer fee.
Barcelona had been strongly linked with Neymar last week, but over the weekend that option seemed to fade away due to their finances. The Independent say that Barcelona were keen on a deal, but that it would have required them to shed at least four players in order to clear space in their salary bill.
Neymar was desperate to stay in Europe though, and was offered around the other top European clubs in order to see if he could make it work. Real Madrid were reportedly one of five other clubs, including Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City, that decided against going after the 31-year-old. In addition to his high salary and injury record, those teams did not consider him a difference-maker at the top level anymore.
While Neymar certainly has his detractors, and his failure to fulfil his potential is in chief down to him, there is no doubt a melancholy to the idea of him leaving Europe without ever hitting the heights he was capable of. On his day, he is no doubt one of the most thrilling players on the planet.
Real Madrid is suitable club for Neymar