Newcastle United and Chelsea both made serious plays to sign PSG star Neymar over the summer, it has been revealed.
Neymar was considering his options at PSG amid tension with management and teammate Kylian Mbappe.
El Pais says Newcastle's Saudi owners were in contact and willing to buy the Brazil captain from PSG. The operation would have cost Newcastle €400m in total, including a five-year contract. But Neymar couldn't be convinced about a move to Tyneside.
Meanwhile, Chelsea's new owners also held talks about signing the attacker.
Chelsea wanted to take Neymar on-loan with a salary offer of €10m. However, PSG turned it down with Chelsea demanding they pay the majority of Neymar's wages for the season.
The former Barcelona attacker wasn't against the move and it's suggested Chelsea intend to try again in January.
