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Wednesday Kickoff: Barca sued over Neymar transfer; Liverpool want new Suarez deal; and more

NeymarBarcelonaCartagines1 (Getty)

By DAN KARELL

Barcelona could wind up paying twice as much as they paid for the transfer of Neymar if they lose a court case.

A Barcelona club member and the Sonda Group, who owned 40 percent of Neymar’s economic rights while he was on Santos, have sued Barcelona for €142 million ($195.3 million) over what they perceive as Barcelona not having paid the full transfer fee to the correct parties.

While Neymar has scored six goals in his last three matches and appears to be settling well in Spain, the facts over his transfer are known. Barcelona stated when the transfer was completed last May that they had paid €57 million for the Brazilian star, with €17 million going to Santos and €40 million going to Neymar’s father. In addition, Barcelona paid Santos an additional €7.9 million for the first right to three youth players, and there is still another friendly between Barcelona and Santos to be paid, with all sales going to the Brazilian club.

The Sonda Group are unhappy with the percentage of the transfer to them, as they only received 40 percent of the €17 million that went to Santos as opposed to 40 percent of the €57 million.

Here are some more stories to kick off your Wednesday:

LIVERPOOL WANT NEW CONTRACT FOR SUAREZ

Liverpool stood strong this summer despite Luis Suarez’s insistence to move to Arsenal, and they’re hoping that Suarez’s recent comments about how he is happy at Liverpool could lead to him signing a new long-term deal.

According to British newspaper The Guardian, Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre traveled to Barcelona to meet with Suarez’s agent Pere Guardiola to open discussions for a new contract. Suarez still has two and a half years left on his current deal but Liverpool are hoping to re-work it to avoid a transfer saga like they encountered last summer.

The Uruguayan international has been on an absolute tear since he made his season debut in late September. Suarez leads the English Premier League with 17 goals in 11 matches, including an incredible eight goals in his last three matches.

BAYERN PROGRESS EASILY TO CLUB WORLD CUP FINAL

While other Bundesliga clubs are on their winter break, Bayern continue to work as they inch closer to a Club World Cup title.

The defending European Champions progressed to the final of the FIFA Club World Cup with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande. Franck Ribery scored Bayern’s first in the 40th minute with a volley from a tight angle before Mario Mandzukic doubled the lead before halftime.

Summer signing Mario Götze scored on a long-range effort in the 48th minute to put the game away as Bayern cruised the rest of the match. The German treble winners will face either South American champions Atletico Mineiro or Moroccan club Raja Casablanca in the final, set for Saturday.

QUICK KICKS

The world’s soccer player association, FIFPro, will challenge the international transfer system in a European court. (REPORT)

Sergio Aguero could miss up to eight weeks now with his calf injury, according to Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini. (REPORT)

David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi round out Reuters’ top ten biggest sports earners of 2013. (REPORT)

AS Monaco forward Radamel Falcao has finally recovered sufficiently from his thigh injury and is back in first-team training, though head coach Claudio Ranieri hasn’t decided yet whether he will face Valenciennes on Friday. (REPORT)

The ultras section for Inter Milan and AS Roma have been banned for two matches over racism charges, while Lazio’s ultras have been given a suspended sentence. (REPORT)

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What do you think of these reports? Surprised to see Barcelona sued? Do you see Suarez signing a new deal with Liverpool? Think Bayern can win the Club World Cup?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. “The Sonda Group are unhappy with the percentage of the transfer to them, as they only received 40 percent of the €17 million that went to Santos as opposed to 40 percent of the €57 million.”

    Uhm, shouldn’t they be suing for 40% of Neymar’s father’s share?

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  2. Why has there been no mention of Sunderland knocking off Chelsea in the league cup? That seems like pretty big news and the fact that Jozy went the full 120 should interest some on this site.

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    • I was wondering the same thing. I fell asleep watching the game last night while putting my daughter t sleep. I went to SBI for info since I missed the end of the game and there was.is none!

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  3. These ownership groups in South America are shady as hell. I hope there’s a clear ruling in favor of Barcelona here to discourage the practice in the future. Obviously FIFA and FIFPro aren’t doing enough to get this under control– hopefully the courts will.

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  4. Where exactly are they going to try and sue him–and good luck proving ownership stake in a human being–sounding like a verbal appropriation as it is.

    Pretty sure no court in Brazil is going to even think of forcing Barcelona to pay 3 times the entire worth of the player, not even their so-called entitled amount of 40%.

    Corrupt, crooked, pathetic. Brazil.

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    • If Neymar didn’t want to have Sonda having a 40% stake in his future contracts, he shouldn’t have taken his cash up front. Two players in the NFL were just looking into this in the US.
      Sounds like Barcelone structured a buyout to hose Sonda, and they are being called on it. How do you apportion the friendly?

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    • Something is fishy with the math here…why did Santos get €17 million (30%) vs €40 million (70%) to Neymar’s father? Did Santos own only 30% of his rights, with Sonda owning 40% of that 30%, or did Sonda own 40% of the total, with Santos + Neymar’s father accounting for the remaining 60%? This sounds like a “working interest” calculation someone got wrong.

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      • Either way, Sonda can’t sue Barcelona. They have to sue Neymar’s dad, if they think they deserve 40% of his 70% share.

      • I have no idea.

        Either way, they have no standing to sue Barcelona of all people as it seem their deal was with the club.

        And even then, no Brazilian court will even think of allowing a lawsuit like this. It would wreck the Brazilian transfer market to Europe, which is in some cases almost single-handedly keeping the clubs alive.

      • Ya, that Falcao thing is very very shady. If I were him, I would make sure to go to a UK club just to get free of it. I’m glad its illegal there. It’s very near to slavery. Yes you get paid, but someone owns your “sale value.’

  5. Surely Liverpool are planning to sell him for more than $100 Million USD just like what Spurs got for Bale. Giving him an extension is just to ensure they get the upper hand, and not the player.

    Reply

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