Was Antonio Conte right to pull the plug on Chelsea’s £155million agreement for Barcelona’s Neymar?

Tue 28 March 2017 10:00, UK

and are both reporting on front page which claims that Antonio Conte decided against a £155 million deal with Barcelona for the services of Brazilian striker Neymar. The reports say that Roman Abramovich had come to the agreement with the Spanish club in the summer only for the Italian to say that he did not want to sign off on the transfer.

Why would Conte have pulled out of the deal?

It’s thought that Conte did not feel that the transfer did not represent good value for money and would rather invest to rebuild the squad with two or three other top additions instead of another winger. Given that the Blues already boast Eden Hazard as a left winger, Neymar may have been a frivolous signing when the club are desperately in need of a replacement for John Terry in the heart of defence with greater depth in midfield also required.

Would Neymar have been a good addition?

Certainly. With 14 goals and 23 assists in 35 appearances this season so far, it’s clear that he has bags of quality in abundance and is one of the world’s greatest superstars. Having captained Brazil to success at the Olympics last summer and already won a host of titles with Barcelona, he would have brought experience as well as the wealth of goals and chances that he creates for himself and his team-mates.

It’s expected that Conte will likely spend heavily this summer to prepare an almost certainly title-winning squad for the extra rigors of the Champions League and the added fixtures that come with it. Such an investment could well do more to aid the club’s chances of long term success with a number of additions likely to make them far more competitive at the elite stage.

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Was Antonio Conte right to pull the plug on Chelsea’s £155million agreement for Barcelona’s Neymar?