Brazilian star Neymar’s contract with his childhood club Santos is set to expire next month.
The time is drawing near for Neymar to decide whether he will stay with Santos or choose a new destination. So far, the 33-year-old forward hasn’t made a decision.
After mutually ending his contract with Saudi club Al Hilal, Neymar joined Santos last January on a five-month deal. That contract will expire on June 30, after which he will become a free agent.
Santos is keen to keep Brazil’s all-time leading scorer at least until the 2026 World Cup.
Having recovered from another injury setback, Neymar returned to the pitch for Santos last week after more than a month. In the third round of the Copa do Brasil, he came on as a substitute in the second half, but his team was eliminated after losing in a tiebreaker.
In a friendly against Leipzig on Thursday morning (Bangladesh time), Neymar played only the first half. After the 3-1 loss to the German club, Neymar said he would decide his future after June 12.
“I still don’t know. I won’t answer any more questions about it. I’ve already said, I don’t know because I’m still thinking about it. Asking me again in three days makes no sense, because the answer will be the same. I will only make a decision after June 12.”
The top Brazilian league will be suspended for a month starting June 12 due to the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.
There are rumors Neymar might extend his contract with Santos. Neymar’s father and agent, Neymar da Silva, told Santos that no decision has been made yet and other options are still on the table.
“Everyone will know on June 30 whether we continue here or not. We haven’t made any decision. Neymar’s contract is ending and there’s been no discussion about renewal yet.”
“Renewing the contract depends on several factors. Santos has full freedom to accept or reject Neymar. Now we need to know if Santos has the structure to keep Neymar. That doesn’t depend on us… Does Neymar still have market value? Yes, he does.”
