Wednesday, 19th January 2011
Santos wonderkid Neymar is set to snub interest from Chelsea and a raft of other European superpowers by staying in Brazil for the entire 2011 season. According to the forward's agent, money is not the player's primary motivation and his club coach too believes that the 18-year-old is staying put.
"There is interest in Neymar and there will always be rumours, but I do not worry", said Santos coach Adilson Batitsta to TV channel Globo, explaining: "It's normal, but I see that my [Santos] managers are very careful. Neymar will remain here."
And the player's agent, who claims Chelsea were ready to pay €30M for his client's services, has sung from the same hymn sheet as Santos' coach.
"There is scouting of the boy almost every day", said Wagner Ribeiro. "When he had to make the decision [over Chelsea’s bid], we said it was better for him to stay at Santos. I remember that he embraced his father and told him he wanted to stay here, because the money for him was not the most important thing."
And Ribeiro added: "I do not think that in 2011 Neymar will leave Santos."
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