The president of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, He recognized this Tuesday in the trial held in Barcelona against Neymar and his parents for alleged corruption that the white club offered 45 million euros to Santos in 2011 for the striker. This proposal was sent to the Brazilian club by the sports management. When asked why, in the end, the player ended up in Barcelona, the merengue leader assured: “The players go where they want and Neymar wanted to go to Barcelona.” This witness did not recall the extremes of this offer because, according to his explanations, he did not participate in the negotiations.
Neymar Jr is being tried in the Barcelona Court for alleged corruption between individuals for his contract to sign for Barça and for which the prosecution is demanding two years in prison and a 10 million fine, while the private accusation, brought by the Brazilian company Dis, who had 40% of the player’s federal rights, requests five years in prison. His father is also on the bench, Neymar Da Silva Santos, his mother, Nobody Gonçalves, former Santos manager Odilio Rodrígues, who was president of FC Barcelona Sandro Rosell, and his vice president at the time of the events Josep María Bartomeu (the prosecution does not accuse him). The hearing, which will take place in seven sessions, will conclude on October 31.
In the first session of the trial, which began on Monday, the court decided to exempt the Brazilian player to be able to participate in the planned matches of Paris Saint Germain and to be able to train. The magistrates took the same agreement for the rest of the defendants. In the previous questions, the defense attorneys stated that the facts being judged are the same as those who led to the condemnation of Barça in 2016 for allegedly defrauding the Treasury of 13 million euros. The lawyers, in addition, stressed that the Spanish justice was not competent to sentence this matter, since the signing of Neymar was conceived in Brazil and in that country there is no crime of corruption between individuals.
The prosecutor recounts in his indictment that Sandro Rosell, as president of Barcelona at the time, began negotiations to sign Neymar in 2011, when he was playing for Santos. The then maximum Barça president and the father of the Brazilian striker, who represents his son, agreed that Barça would pay the player 40 million to ensure the signing of him in 2014, when he was released from Santos, and that he would anticipate him 10 million at the time on the condition that Neymar had to return the money if he breached the agreement. In 2013, Barça signed another agreement with Santos for a preferential option to purchase three players for 7.9 million. According to the accusation, that contract, as well as others signed for the celebration of friendly matches, was linked to the signing of Neymar. This plan was designed, according to the prosecution, so as not to pay the percentage that the DIS company corresponded to.
