Neymar: ‘Lionel Messi and I went through hell at Paris Saint-Germain’

Al-Hilal attacker Neymar has launched a scathing attack on former club Paris Saint-Germain, claiming that both he and Lionel Messi went through “hell” in the French capital.
Four years after the Brazilian’s world-record move to the Parc des Princes, he was reunited with former Barcelona teammate Messi, who was forced to leave Camp Nou upon the expiration of his contract in 2021.

Messi initially struggled to adapt to life in Ligue 1, managing just six goals in his debut campaign, albeit while registering 15 assists as the Mauricio Pochettino-led PSG regained the title from Lille.

Following Christophe Galtier’s appointment, Messi and Neymar initially thrived in a front three with Kylian Mbappe, but things soon turned incredibly sour for both players in the spring months.

Messi was briefly sanctioned by the club for taking an unauthorised trip to Saudi Arabia in order to fulfil commercial commitments as a tourism ambassador, as he was fined and dropped from the squad before issuing a public apology.

The furore saw a portion of the PSG fanbase protest heavily against Messi and Neymar, who even had some of the club’s ultras turn up outside his house to demand that he leave the club.

Despite registering 39 goals and 37 assists between them last season, the South American duo were also booed by their own supporters on the field, and they ended their associations with the club during the summer window.

A Barcelona homecoming was mooted for both players, but Neymar accepted a lucrative contract offer from Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Hilal, while Messi left for MLS outfit Inter Miami.

During a recent interview with Brazilian outfit Globo, Neymar admitted that he felt “very sad” for Messi last season, as the elation that the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner experienced upon becoming a World Cup winner with Argentina was in stark contrast to his domestic mood.

“I was very happy for the year he had, but at the same time very sad, because he lived both sides of the coin, he went to heaven with the Argentina team, won everything in recent years, and with Paris he lived hell,” Neymar said.

“We lived through hell, both he and I. We get upset, because we’re not there for nothing, we’re there to do our best, be champions, try to make history. That’s why we started playing together again, we came together there so we could make history. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it.”

Messi had previously conceded that he never wanted to leave Barcelona for PSG, where he won two Ligue 1 titles but failed to propel the club to a long-awaited first Champions League crown.

Since leaving on a free transfer for Inter Miami, Messi has hit the ground running in the United States with 11 goals from as many games – in addition to five assists – as he captained Gerardo Martino’s side to Leagues Cup glory.

Messi – who has been joined in Miami by former Barcelona colleagues Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets – scored in each of his seven appearances in the tournament, as the Herons defeated Nashville SC on penalties in the final.

Meanwhile, Neymar is still waiting to make his Al-Hilal debut and was not included in the squad for Friday’s 4-3 win over Al-Ittihad, where ex-Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a hat-trick.