Albert Soler: 'Losing Neymar affected Barcelona transfer dealings'

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 02 September 2017

Barcelona director Albert Soler admits that losing Neymar in a world-record deal to PSG had an impact on his side's transfer plans.

Barcelona director Albert Soler has admitted that losing Neymar had a negative impact on the club's transfer dealings this summer.

Neymar completed a blockbuster £200m move to Paris Saint-Germain to smash the world transfer record, leaving Barcelona to cope with the loss of one of their star attractions both on and off the field.

The Spanish giants spent big to bring Ousmane Dembele to the club as a replacement, but their summer business has been widely criticised - including by former player Xavi.

Reports also emerged claiming that the board were unhappy with some Barcelona players for not alerting them to Neymar's potential exit, but Soler insists that was not the case.

"Let's not get into players, they have a personal life, we respect that and we understand,. We don't expect explanations from players. We manage the club from the situations that we are confronted by," he told reporters.

"When we received the sense that PSG were talking to Neymar, this was on the US tour, this was when we started working. Neymar is a very difficult player to replace so it has nothing to do with whether the money we received was good or bad.

"The real problem is not how much money we have, the problem is Neymar has gone. Let's face the facts, Neymar's departure has affected us in a sporting sense and that has had an effect on our negotiations."

Barcelona have begun the season with back-to-back wins in La Liga, keeping clean sheets in both games.