Neymar's father has made it clear he wants his son to stay at Santos as the Brazilian's contract ticks towards expiring.
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Neymar's Santos contract set to expireBrazilian's father issues update Provides insight into his son's situationFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Neymar Junior is in the last weeks of his Santos contract but is yet to put pen to paper on an extension. Now his father, Neymar Senior, has revealed the 33-year-old is happy at the Brazilian Serie A side and hopes he will stay put as they gave him the chance to resurrect his career after a string of injuries.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT NEYMAR'S DAD SAID
"I want him to stay. Santos at that moment opened the door for Neymar to recover. He needed to play, we knew about the minor injuries. It's not just him, he was out for more than a year and a half. The biggest work was in his head. We know about his dream," he said, via ESPN.
"Neymar is living here again, happy, close to his friends and family. Santos is the right environment for him to continue, but we have to make many situations viable. Maintain his social and work life, but maintain the brand he built. Create this demand to achieve his goals.
"He is very intense, you can't control him. He fought for the ball in the air the whole time. He is completely stable now. And we are very happy. For the second half of the year we have a guy who is still concerned about getting better. We had offers, Neymar was never left out of any window and he wouldn't be left out of this one.
"We don't accept it because he wants to recover a little more, to reach his ideal level. Neymar is living here again, happy, close to his friends and family. Santos is the right environment for him to continue, but we have to make many situations viable. Maintain his social and work life, but maintain the brand he built. Create this demand to achieve his goals."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Neymar has had an up-and-down stint at Santos but it has been far better than his disastrous spell at Al-Hilal, where his contract was eventually terminated. When fit, the ex-Barcelona man has shown his quality but there is no guarantee he will stay at his boyhood team.
Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?
While a player like Neymar is unlikely to be short of offers, with a return to Europe mooted, the former Paris Saint-Germain star could be set for his last Santos game on Thursday away to Fortaleza.