Brazilian court impounds Neymar’s private jet, yacht

Barcelona superstar, Neymar may be having a party on the pitch this season, but off of it, things have taken a significant turn for the worse.

According to the BBC, a federal court in Brazil has frozen the striker’s assets worth almost $50million (£34.5m) over an unpaid fine for tax evasion. Prosecutors have accused Neymar of setting up companies as a front in order to pay a lower rate of tax between 2011 and 2013 when he was still playing for Santos.

They are demanding £11m in undeclared taxes and have now moved to ensure it will be paid by seizing assets, including several properties, a yacht, a private jet and companies belonging to the Neymar family.

The decision can be appealed and a prosecutor has told the Associated Press that Neymar is unlikely to face jail. However, the fine must be paid in full before the assets are…defrosted.

“If he pays what he owes, the case is closed,” the auditor added. “Our legislation isn’t too harsh.”

So much is happening with Neymar’s life off of the pitch, you may be a little confused. To clear it up, this is a separate case from the one that both the 24-year-old and his father attended in Madrid earlier this month.

That case, brought forward by the Spanish federal court, is over alleged fraud with regards to his transfer to Barcelona in 2013.

The true cost of the deal is believed to have been more than the original  €57.1 million that was reported by the Catalan club, but has since revealed to have been around €80m. A significant portion of that was paid directly to Neymar’s father, who owed a portion of his image rights.

With all this going on, it is no wonder the Brazil national captain has failed to agree a new deal with Barcelona. Currently part of the world’s most devastating attacking trio, the La Liga leaders are looking to tie his future down for the foreseeable future.

However, a variety of issues have prevented talks from moving forward, leading to speculation regarding Neymar’s future. Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Manchester United have all shown an interest in meeting his €190m release clause this summer.

Barcelona cannot increase that clause until a new deal is signed, leaving them vulnerable to losing the world’s third-best footballer. According to their director of football Robert Fernandez, however, they are not concerned about that just yet.

“Neymar and his management are very happy and we are very relaxed,” Fernandez told Marca. “The club stands by the player. These things happen and we shouldn’t dwell on it.

“The important thing is that he is happy and that’s something we can see in every game he plays.”

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