France President Emmanuel Macron gives his seal of approval for Neymar's transfer to PSG

IANS

New Delhi: French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday gave his seal of approval to Neymar's expected transfer from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain a day after the Brazilian said good bye to his teammtes in Spain as the new coach gave him permission to sort out his future.

"It adds attractiveness. Yes, it's good news," Macron told journalists as he visited a holiday centre for children outside Paris.

Macron also congratulated Qatari-owned PSG's chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who was attending the same event.

"Congratulations, I believe there has been good news," the president told him, referring to Neymar's expected arrival.

French Budget Minister Gerald Darmanin also reflected on the transfer saying, "If in fact Neymar does come to a French club, the budget minister will be delighted at the tax that he will be able to pay in France," Darmanin said on France Inter radio.

"It`s better for this player to pay his tax in France rather than pay it elsewhere," Darmanin said.
"When you are a minister, your duty is to defend the interests of the state, and the interests of the state are that people pay their tax in France."

Neymar was expected to arrive in Paris on Thursday to finalise his world-record 222-million-euro transfer ($260 million) from Barcelona to PSG.

Macron was speaking shortly before Spain's La Liga refused to accept payment of Neymar's 222 million euro ($260 million) buyout clause, potentially delaying his world record move from Barcelona.

As per a report by AFP, La Liga has refused to accept the whopping payment of Neymar's buyout clause, potentially delaying the Brazilian`s world record move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain.

"We can confirm that the legal representatives of the player attended La Liga to pay the clause and this has been rejected," the spokesperson told AFP.

La Liga chief Javier Tebas said this week he would block the transfer because it infringed UEFA's financial fair play rules.

(With AFP inputs)