A pre-match press conference is often as flat as a marathon in Beauce.

Especially when it precedes a meeting as crucial as this semi-final first leg of the Champions League between PSG and Manchester City on Wednesday night.

But the very presence of Neymar - his third only in this type of exercise since his arrival, after his presentation in 2017 and another in 2018 - has raised the sauce.

Very relaxed, the 29-year-old Brazilian star spoke on Tuesday at midday before his trainer Mauricio Pochettino.

Beyond the inevitable clichés on the "difficult match against a great team" which awaits Paris, "Ney" slipped some messages anything but harmless.

"My primary goal is the Champions League, not the Ballon d'Or," he said, to sweep away the notion of individualism that has always stuck to him.

Stop the "bad tongues"

“Since my arrival in Paris, I have experienced difficulties that I have overcome. I remain the pro that I have always been ”, he added to prune“ the bad tongues ”which blasted on his night life. At times, we had the impression of listening to the austere João, the monk furtively embodied by the former Santos and Barça in

La Casa de Papel

...

Obviously, PSG did not accidentally expose its biggest star, with Kylian Mbappé, at such an important point in his season and when the subject of the extension of the two stars is hot.

The long-awaited question eventually arrived.

When will Neymar decide to extend a contract which expires in June 2022, with this club which "has grown a lot for four years" according to the striker?

"I've already talked about that," he smirked at first, specifying that the moment was not necessarily ideal to develop the theme.

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Before letting go: “This may be the season where I feel the happiest here.

I am very happy, things will come naturally.

“The message is passed, both by the player and by PSG.

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  • Manchester city

  • PSG

  • Neymar

  • Champions League

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