Neymar: Brazilian Star Takes Massive Risk by Spurning Real Madrid

The chase to land Neymar has been a fierce battle between El Clasico rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona. The Brazilian striker is one of the most coveted young stars in football, but deciding to reject Madrid was a major mistake.

Martín del Palacio Langer of Goal.com reports the 20-year-old phenom will no longer consider the current La Liga leaders:

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Neymar will not be joining Real Madrid now or in future and the Brazilian now looks set for a sensational switch to Barcelona after Florentino Perez scuppered his side's chances of a deal for the 20-year-old forward due to an "arrogant attitude."

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Even though Neymar, who currently plays for Santos in Brazil, wasn't pleased with the way things went with Perez in the past, closing the door completely represents a serious overreaction. Transfer negotiations rarely go smoothly, as he'll likely continue to learn in the coming years.

He's going to have a huge price tag if Santos ultimately decides to move him, and there are only a small group of teams in the world with the funds to get a deal done. Real Madrid is certainly one of them, so he would be shrinking an already small market.

Santos can't be pleased with his decision, either. The club would have benefited from a bidding war between the rivals—which would have likely boosted the price to remarkable levels—but without that competition, the upside is limited.

These are all things a young player has to learn, especially one with as much talent and potential as Neymar.

The transfer market is rarely cut and dry. There are always twists and turns, so ruling out a potential suitor is rarely a good plan of attack. Keeping as many different options as possible open usually leads to the best result.

Since the report says Barca would be willing to wait until 2013 if necessary, there's still time for Neymar to change his mind about Madrid. A lot of things can change over the course of a year, as memories from the past begin to fade away.

After all of the drama in recent years, the entire ordeal will be a learning experience for the talented forward. He needs to be careful about the stances he takes because fans around the globe are eagerly awaiting his next step.

At least for now, his plans for that next step don't include Real Madrid.