Barca president a joke, Neymar says

Barcelona: Neymar labelled Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu a “joke” as the war of wards between Barcelona’s beleaguered board and the Brazilian star continued on Tuesday.

In interviews with Catalan newspapers Mundo Deportivo and Sport, Bartomeu claimed Barca would be better off without Neymar this season following his world record 222 million euro (Dh969 million; $263.7 million) move to Paris Saint-Germain. With Bartomeu’s handling of Barca’s haphazard transfer policy being heavily criticised, he described the loss of Neymar as an “opportunity” for Barca to rebuild their midfield rather than pile resources into a superstar front three of Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. “This president is a joke,” Neymar replied in a comment about the news on social media site Instagram. (AFP)