Neymar Regrets Leaving Barcelona, Says Former Team-Mate Adriano

Neymar regrets leaving Barcelona "more so than most," according to his former Blaugrana team-mate and fellow Brazilian, Adriano. 

Neymar is nearing the end of his second season at Paris Saint-Germain since he left for the French capital in a £200 million deal in August 2017.

There have been rumours since almost the moment he left the Camp Nou that he is not happy in France, and reports have continued this season that the Brazil international would be open to a return to Barca.

And Adriano, who enjoyed great success at Barca between 2010 and 2016 before moving to Besiktas, has now told Cadena SER's El Larguero (h/t Sport) that Neymar wishes he'd never left in the first place:

"I spoke with Neymar three weeks ago. Everyone who has played for Barcelona and left has regretted it and I think, for him, even more so than most."

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It was widely speculated when Neymar, 27, left Barca that he did so in order to step out of Lionel Messi's shadow.

The move also threw up the opportunity for Neymar to become a PSG icon by finally leading them to European success rather than just domestic triumphs.

As yet that has not quite worked out.

PSG have exited the UEFA Champions League at the last-16 stage the last two seasons, and on both occasions, Neymar had to watch from the sidelines due to injury.

In 2017-18, the French giants exited with a whimper to eventual champions Real Madrid, losing 5-2 on aggregate.

This season, they had one foot in the quarter-finals after an excellent 2-0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

But PSG then contrived to lose the second leg at the Parc des Princes 3-1 and exited the competition on away goals:

Meanwhile, Barcelona have established themselves among the favourites to go all the way in the Champions League in 2018-19.

Manchester City and Juventus are the other well-backed sides in the last eight, but they look to have a harder route to the final than Barca:

If the Blaugrana win the Champions League this year, it is likely only to further enhance Neymar's mooted desire to return to the club where he made his name.