‘Circus’: Neville ‘scared to death’ by huge Newcastle transfer rumour with Howe tipped to ‘go for it’
Gary Neville says the idea of Newcastle United signing Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar ‘scares him to death’.
The Brazilian international joined PSG for Barcelona for £198million in 2017.
This remains the most expensive transfer in history and there is a debate about whether or not Neymar has justified the fee.
The 31-year-old has struggled to stay fit during his time in the French capital, rarely managing to accumulate over 20 Ligue 1 appearances in a season.
In fact, he has only managed to do so once; playing 22 times last term. This season, Neymar has played 20 times in the French top flight but has been sidelined with an ankle injury since the start of March.
When Newcastle were taken over by some filthy-rich Saudi Arabians in October 2021, many expected them to go crazy in the transfer market, signing players of Neymar’s calibre and fame.
The Magpies have spent very sensibly, however, meaning those rumours have gradually died down.
But with Champions League qualification looking likely, silly season appears to be back upon us at St James’ Park.
Magpies boss Eddie Howe was recently forced to play down links to Neymar and Al-Nassr’s Cristiano Ronaldo, though GiveMeSport journalist Dean Jones has claimed there is some truth to the links to the PSG forward.
Seeing Neymar at St James’ Park would terrify Manchester United legend Neville, who actually reckons it would have a negative effect on the tremendous mood at Newcastle.
“That would scare me to death, that sort of signing,” he said on The Gary Neville Podcast.
“Neymar is a sensational player but I think Eddie Howe all of a sudden would sort of have a circus – Eddie Howe doesn’t need a circus up here.
“You think about what Newcastle are at this moment in time, they’re building, they’ve got foundations.
“What you don’t want to do is basically go and disrupt that. Fans are really behind the team they’re behind the manager, there’s a sort of a spirit building.
“They’re going to need to do it at some point, go for those big name signings, and they’re going to need to make that jump and Eddie’s going to need to be brave at a point and say ‘yeah let’s go for it’.”
Newcastle’s defeat to Arsenal on Sunday has added a few nerves to their bid to finish inside the top four.
Howe’s side will hope to bounce back when they face relegation-threatened Leeds on Saturday.