The forgotten Brazilian who helped create the PSG of today
In between the Ronaldinho and Neymar years, there was one Brazilian in the French capital who contributed hugely the creation of the PSG that we are now accustomed to.
"I would like to play with Neymar," admitted Anderson Luiz de Carvalho, better known as Nenê, back in 2012. The winger was one of the stars of a PSG that was already under the control of Nasser Al Khelaifi.
However, the veteran wasn't asking PSG to sign the then-19-year-old Neymar, but rather expressing his desire to return to his homeland with Neymar's Santos.
That deal never came to pass, but Nene didn't play again for PSG either, completing a move to Qatari outfir Al-Gharafi soon after.
Nene never regained the level of performance that he had regularly displayed in France and after a fleeting and unforgettable spell in the Premier League with West Ham, he finally returned home to Brazil, where he returned to an acceptable level of performance.
- Career in Spain -
Years earlier, Nene had become something of a journeyman in Spain. His first club in the Iberian peninsula was Real Mallorca, before a spell with Alaves between 2004 and 2006.
Regardless of performances, Nene never stayed in one place too long, spending a year with Celta Vigo before making the move to France with Monaco, where his legend would begin in earnest.
Alongside Jeremy Menez, Nene starred for the Monegasque side, convincing PSG to seal his signature in 2010, following another loan spell in Span with Espanyol of course.
- Reconstruction of PSG -
Nene was PSG's star man in his first season and was joined by the likes of Javier Pastore, Maxwell, Jeremy Menez, Thiago Motta, Blaise Matuidi and Kevin Gameiro in his second as PSG returned to the Champions League.
Under the management of Carlo Ancelotti, Nene would go on to play alongside the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Thiago Silva, Marco Verratti and Lucas Moura, but the Brazilian soon decided that he wanted to quit the Parisian side. The Samba star never did like to be a small fish in a big pond and thus he headed off in search of a new challenge.
That search may not have ended too well but Nene can look back now knowing that Neymar plays for PSG in part thanks to the job he did in helping the club rebuild all those years ago.