Barcelona's Gerard Pique Reveals Neymar Contact, Wants PSG Star to Come Back

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has revealed he's been in contact with Paris Saint-Germain's Neymar since Sunday's 5-2 La Liga win over Real Betis, and has also said that he and his team-mates want the Brazil star to return to the Camp Nou.

Mikael McKenzie of the Express caught up with the former Manchester United man after he finished second in a poker tournament in Barcelona.

It was an event he has attended with Neymar in the past, and he told McKenzie he let him know of his success immediately: "For sure, yesterday I was very lucky to finish second and I shared it with him because I know that he loves poker, and so do I. We shared this hobby."

He also admitted to talking about his future, when asked about the transfer speculation: "We have spoken, yeah. But obviously it is a private conversation."

Francois Mori/Associated Press

In a separate interview with Television Espanola (h/t Goal's Sacha Pisani), Pique talked about the team's desire to see Neymar return in more depth: "Of course we'd like him to come back. But it's something we can't control. We'll leave it in the hands of those who decide [these things] and from there we'll see in a few days."

Per Pisani, Barcelona remain confident they will be able to seal a deal for Neymar before the end of the transfer window on 2 September. Talks have been progressing, and the Catalans have offered as much as €160 million (£144m/$177m) to bring him back.

The 27-year-old played for the Blaugrana between 2013 and 2017, winning La Liga twice, three Copa del Rey titles and the 2014-15 UEFA Champions League.

He moved to Paris two years ago but has been strongly linked with a return to Spain throughout summer. He has yet to play for his current club this season, and that will continue until his future is cleared up, per manager Thomas Tuchel (h/t ESPN FC's Jonathan Johnson):

According to Pisani, Real Madrid are also suitors for the Brazil international, who has been productive when fit for Les Parisiens, scoring a remarkable 51 goals in 58 matches.

He has struggled with injuries, however, with both of his campaigns in France interrupted by foot problems in the second half of the season. As a result, he's been unable to make much of an impact in the knockout stages of the Champions League, and Les Parisiens have been knocked out in the Round of 16 in consecutive years.

Pique attended the poker event with midfielder Arturo Vidal and both performed well, finishing inside the top five:

Vidal took home a cool €134,460 for his fifth-placed finish, while a second-placed finish netted Pique €352,950.

Both featured in Sunday's win over Betis, which saw Pique make his 500th appearance for the club.