Not signing Neymar has been good thing, reveals Joan Laporta

Barcelona signed Neymar from Santos in 2013 on a five-year deal and the Brazilian thrived in his new surroundings as he scored 105 goals and provided 76 assists in 186 appearances across all competitions. The Brazilian international was part of the formidable 'MSN' trio forged with six-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi and Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez. The 29-year-old helped the Catalan club win two La Liga titles and one Champions League during his spell at the club.

Laporta revealed that the former Blaugrana star expressed an interest in rejoining the club once his presidential change was made official by the Spanish giants. A deal was in the works for the Brazilian superstar but didn't come to fruition as Neymar went on to sign a big-money contract extension at the Parc des Princes. Laporta gave his thoughts to the press and claimed that losing out on the PSG star turned out to be a good thing for the La Liga side.

“As the numbers were explained to us, we thought there was room to do it. We didn't have our due diligence done. They told us that he wanted to come and that he couldn't continue there, having convinced the club [to let him leave]. But it's football and whoever makes the best offer wins. Not signing him has been a good thing, it wouldn't have helped. Neymar could have generated a lot of income, but not signing him has been a good thing,” Laporta told RAC1.