Turkish giants eyeing up potential blockbuster move for Neymar Jr: Reports

Fenerbahce are planning a move for Neymar Jr this summer, according to Fanatik. The Brazilian superstar is currently with his boyhood club Santos, but the Turkish side are offering him a chance to return to European football.

Neymar rose through the ranks at the Brazilian club before completing a move to Barcelona in the summer of 2013. The player earned worldwide fame with the Catalans, before moving to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in 2017.

After six seasons at the Parc des Princes, Neymar Jr left the Ligue 1 champions in 2023 to complete a move to Al-Hilal. Unfortunately, his stay in the Middle East wasn't fruitful, with injuries playing spoilsport.

The Brazilian managed just seven appearances with the Saudi Pro League club, scoring one goal and setting up three more. The 33-year-old terminated his contract with Al-Hilal in January this year to rejoin Santos.

Neymar, however, remains keen to return to European football this year as he prepares to represent Selecao at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. There is reportedly a clause in his contract that allows any European club to sign him without paying a transfer fee.

Fenerbahce are now ready to exercise that option. Jose Mourinho is apparently keen to add more firepower to his attack, and has set his sights on Neymar Jr.

The report adds that the Brazilian could be tempted to join the Turkish giants and play under Mourinho. Fenerbahce are now working on a pay package to convince the player.

What has Neymar Jr said about his future?

Neymar Jr has stated that he has a 70% chance of staying with Santos. Speaking recently, the Brazilian insisted that the Vila Belmiro club is his home.

"What are the chances of staying? From 0 to 10, 7. My story with Santos will never end, I was born in Santos and I want to die there. It's my home, it's my favorite team and I'm doing everything I can to help Santos," said Neymar.

He continued:

"So far I've helped more off the pitch than on, but that wasn't the goal. I came to recover myself and find happiness, and I'm in this process, readjusting my body to get back to my best. I want to get back to my best. Today I'm very happy at Santos, Santos is my home."

Neymar has scored three goals and set up three more from 12 games for Santos since his move.

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Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written over 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered 20 million reads.

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Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

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Edited by Deepungsu Pandit