Sports Burst - Neymar on the Fence
Neymar keeps Real Madrid options open despite calls from Barcelona for Camp Nou destiny declaration
By Tim Stannard
Neymar stays silent over Barcelona move to keep Real Madrid exit door open
It's over! Neymar has made his decision! The move from PSG is just hours away!
Not really. Not even close. Sigh.
Thursday 22nd August, 2019.
Ten days until the summer transfer window closes in Europe and all this is over one way or another. At least until January.
Neymar is still at PSG. And the Brazilian is no nearer changing that state of affairs some 24-hours after Sports Burst's latest report.
In fact, Barcelona are said to be getting cold feet - that's according to Mundo Deportivo - with the paper claiming that the club is waiting for Neymar to go public and declare that Barcelona is the only destination, to cool the interest of Real Madrid.
Apparently, Gerard Pique has been urging Neymar to take a public stance, but the PSG-man won't in case Real Madrid remains the only viable get-out. According to L'Equipe this week, that might have been a possibility with an offer made for Neymar in return for $110 million along with Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez and Keylor Navas.
Sports Burst would have snapped it up, but PSG apparently declined. And this could well cost them cash this weekend. PSG are at home to Toulouse and if there are further potty-mouthed banners held up by supporters against all things Neymar, as there was in the season opener against Nimes, then it could get expensive. On Wednesday, PSG was fined $2100 by French League for those incidents.
It never rains but it pours.
The Sports Burst live show with Gabrielle Amado and Andres Cordero will talk all things Neymar. The studio doors will be locked, there's no choice for them really. Just head to our beIN SPORTS USA Facebook page at 12PM ET / 9AM PT for all the fun.
Real Madrid offloads Kubo while Alexis Sanchez refuses wage cut at Inter
Staying on a Real Madrid note and the prodigious talent of Takefusa Kubo has been officially loaned out to Mallorca.
The Japanese 18-year-old is set to make his debut on Sunday on beIN SPORTS in a clash against Real Sociedad, where he will come up against Martin Odegaard - a potentially bleak look at his future if matters don't pan out at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Italian clubs are still gettin' busy with just two days before the Serie A season starts. For reasons best left to themselves, Inter are continuing the club's mission to reunite parts of a Manchester United forward line was a wholesale failure last season. Romelu Lukaku was the first piece and negotiations are continuing between the two clubs to move Alexis Sanchez in the same direction.
While the injury-challenged Chilean is thought to be keen on a loan move, Sanchez is not keen enough to accept a fifty percent wage cut which is what is would suffer at Inter.
Meanwhile Hirving Lozano is in Napoli to undergo a medical and pen a five-year deal with Carlo Ancelotti's side after a $42 million move from PSV was agreed. "Imagine: my son playing for Diego Armando Maradona's club," beamed a tickled pink Jesus Lonzano.
Boca and Flamengo chalk up Copa Lib wins as River Plate gets ready
The Copa Libertadores delivered the goods on Wednesday night - fantastic goals and leg-threatening tackles that lead to red cards.
They were all present and correct in Boca Juniors getting a fine 3-0 win on the road and at altitude against Liga de Quito in the first-leg of the team's quarterfinal clash.
In the evening's second game, Flamengo defeated Internacional in an-all Brazilian affair after two goals from Bruno Henrique.
Thursday sees the last of the four quarterfinal clashes taking place with the defending champions, River Plate, taking on Cerro Porteno of Paraguay.
That game gets underway live on beIN SPORTS from 6PM ET / 3PM PT. That is followed directly by action from the Copa Sudamericana quarterfinals with a first leg match and another all-Brazilian behemoth battle as Corinthians face Fluminense.