Barcelona Transfer News: Thiago Silva Reveals Neymar PSG Conversation

Paris Saint-Germain captain Thiago Silva has revealed that he tried to persuade Brazilian team-mate and Barcelona star Neymar to join him at the Parc des Princes during January's Ballon d'Or ceremony.

Per Le Parisien (h/t FourFourTwo), Silva said Neymar had little reaction to the request.

"We talked a bit at the presentation of the Ballon d'Or in Zurich," Silva explained. "I said to him: 'Come, come to play in Paris with me!.' He laughed a bit, but he didn't react. He said: 'We'll see, let's keep going like this and, at the end of the season, you'll see what I'm going to do'."

Neymar, 24, has been impressive this season at the Camp Nou but continues to be linked with a move away from the Catalan giants, per MailOnline's Adrian Durham. 

He has been consistently linked with Manchester United, and his father, Neymar Sr., recently revealed that the Red Devils launched a €190 million (£147 million) bid for the forward last summer, per Spanish radio station COPE (via the Evening Standard's Tom Dutton).

Neymar insisted earlier this week that he is relaxed over his ongoing contract negotiations with Barca and said that he is "optimistic" of reaching an agreement, per Sport's Jordi Gil.

His current deal with Barca runs until 2018, and he surely could have no better prospects at any other club.

Alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, Neymar is part of arguably the best front three of all time and could be set to win a second consecutive treble this season, per Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe and Dean Jones:

However, if any club has the money to persuade Neymar to move away from Spain—where he has been embroiled in tax fraud accusations since his arrival from Santos in 2013—it is PSG.

The presence of compatriot Silva in Paris could also be an attraction for Neymar, as the 31-year-old centre-back told Le Parisien (via ESPN FC's Mark Rodden), "I'm like his big brother."

Neymar would be a blockbuster addition to an already quality-packed squad at PSG, but he could likely work well under manager Laurent Blanc, especially as Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to depart the club at the end of the 2015-16 season when his contract expires.

The Swede will leave a big hole in the PSG squad but one that would be more than adequately filled by Neymar.

However, given how the Brazil captain is flourishing at Barca, it seems highly unlikely that he will depart the Camp Nou anytime soon.