"Neymar wants to leave PSG, but PSG don't want him to let him go"

Bartomeu tried to cool down speculation linking Neymar with a Barcelona return, but he did let slip an important bit of information in the process: PSG don't want to let the Brazilian go.

"We know that Neymar wants to leave PSG, but we also know that PSG do not want Neymar to leave," said Bartomeu, who also assured that vice-president Jordi Mestre's departure has nothing to do with disagreements regarding the potential signing of the Brazilian.

July 5, 2019

The Barcelona president then went on to heap praise upon Ousmane Dembélé, suggesting that the Frenchman is a better player than Neymar. "For me, Dembélé is a different player and we want him to stay here. He's young, he's talented, he's different from other players in the world of football. He has a bright future and we want him at Barça".

It's worth remembering that the young winger has been linked with a move away from the Camp Nou as part of Neymar's return, although when asked about the Brazil star, Bartomeu said he din't want to comment "on a player from another team".

He also spoke about Antoine Griezmann, who has been linked with a move to Camp Nou for a long time. The Barça president confirmed that the Spanish champions have been in discussions with Atlético Madrid over his signing. "This Thursday there was a meeting in Madrid between Óscar Grau and the CEO of Atlético, Miguel Ángel Gil Marín to open talks over the player. It was the first time we dealt with this issue," he admitted.

July 5, 2019

Bartomeu went on to comment on the future of Matthijs de Ligt, which is still up in the air as what seemed like a done deal with Juventus appears to stall. "I said a long time ago that I knew where De Ligt would end up. But I can't say, they have to do it first," he said of the Dutch central defender.