Former Barcelona player, Ronaldinho, is promoting his signature sunglasses in the city, and this Saturday he participated in a foot-volley tournament on the beach of Castelldefels where he noted that he’d be happy if Neymar returned to the Blaugrana. His compatriot is staying at Paris Saint-Germain this season, but at the end of the campaign he could move to the Spanish capital.Real Madrid intend to make a move for him, but that’s an option that Ronaldinho doesn’t like too much.
“The important thing is that Neymar is happy,” he said to MARCA.
“I like that my friends are always happy but, personally, I would be happier if he returned to Barcelona.”But it’s something I don’t think will happen.
” Ronaldinho definitively retired from football last January and now he stays in Barcelona, a city he always loved, a lot. “I’m happy and calm here and don’t miss football,” he added.
A former Camp Nou icon would love to see a fellow Brazilian head back to Catalunya, but doubts a deal will be done for the Paris-Saint Germain star. A record-breaking €222 million (£199m/$258m) transfer took the Brazil international away from Camp Nou in the summer of 2017.
It was suggested that the 26-year-old had grown tired of operating in the shadow of Lionel Messi and wanted to become a talismanic figure in his own right.
Neymar has impressed in France, despite seeing his debut campaign ended by injury, but has also been heavily linked with a move back to Spain. Ronaldinho would love to see a fellow countryman back at Barca, rather than their arch-rivals Real Madrid, but is not convinced that an emotional reunion can be negotiated.
A man who spent five memorable years at Camp Nou during his playing days told Marca:
“The important thing is that Neymar is happy. “I like that my friends are always happy but, personally, I would be happier if he returned to Barcelona.
“But it’s something I don’t think will happen.”
While continuing to star at club level, Neymar has also inherited a role as leader with the Brazil national side.
Ronaldinho once filled a similar position, with the former World Player of the Year tasting World Cup glory with his country in 2002.
Now 38 years of age, a modern-day icon has called time on his illustrious career, with no competitive action taken in since leaving Fluminense in 2015. Ronaldinho claims to be enjoying his retirement, with there no desire on his part to get back into the game. He added:
“I’m happy and calm here and don’t miss football.”