According to Paris Saint-Germain’s newest recruit, Gianluigi Buffon, Neymar’s disappointment at the FIFA World Cup 2018 can fuel the Brazil star to “win everything” at PSG.
Gianluigi Buffon presented as a PSG player on Monday.
Neymar missed the end of the 2017-18 season with a fractured foot, as PSG won a domestic treble. It was his first season in the French capital after joining from Barcelona in a world-record €222 million deal in 2017.
Buffon thinks failing to win the World Cup could act as extra motivation for Neymar in the coming campaign. Buffon said at his presentation to the media on Monday,
“I think that it happens to everyone to get difficult moments. In life, first of all, and during our careers. But there are moments that make us stronger. Neymar can come back in Paris with the envy to win everything. It’s a good thing for him and the club.”
Buffon confirmed he sought counsel from former Juventus team-mate, Blaise Matuidi before opting to join PSG.
“I played only a year with him but I have affection for him. He told me, ‘In my opinion, Paris need a person like you, you’ll feel good there’. That’s why I listened to his advice. PSG are the team that I followed the most in recent years because I was curious. I was surprised to see that they couldn’t reach their objective. But the team needs time, we always need time to improve.”
“Paris have great ambitions and there is a constant progression. I think that the team has the character of the coach,” he added.
Buffon agreed on a one-year deal with the Ligue 1 champions, ending a 17-year stay in Italy with Juventus.
Although Buffon won nine Serie A titles and four Coppas Italia with Juventus, he never tasted glory in the Champions League, losing in the final three times.
