The Story of Neymar Jr.
  • 5 years ago
Born on February 5, 1992, in the industrial city of Mogi das Cruzes, he never stayed in one place as his father was a soccer player. Officially, Neymar started playing at the age of 6 when the family moved in with his grandmother in Sao Vicente. In 2003, as destiny would have it, the family once again moved, this time to Santos, the Brazilian club made world-famous by Pele. At age 14, when kids were busy collecting toys, Neymar Jr. had 50 footballs in his home collection. In 2009, he made his professional debut as a 17-year-old coming off the bench for Santos. But even before this, he spent two weeks training with Real Madrid and had a transfer lined up, however, the move did not go through. The teenager attracted not only Los Blancos but Premier League clubs West Ham United and Chelsea. On June 2013, Neymar signed a 5-year contract with FC Barcelona after a trade with Santos in exchange for €57 million (about $76 million). And 2 years later he helped them win the “treble” of La Liga championship, Copa del Rey, and the UEFA Champions League title. Although he tasted success in the 4 year Barcelona stint, he desired to get out of Messi's shadow and pioneered a record-breaking transfer to PSG in August 2017 for €222 million ($263 million).