The 25-year-old suddenly became embroiled in one of the summer’s most unexpected transfer sagas, with Paris Saint-Germain seemingly prepared to activate his €222m (£199m) release clause as manager Unai Emery spoke of a need to sign ‘one of the best players in the world’.
But according to various reports in Spain, Pique, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez spoke with the PSG target for several hours to convince him of his importance at Camp Nou, before Pique confirmed the U-turn with a simple message on Instagram: ‘He stays.’
Sport claim that Barca went on a major charm offensive, beginning with new boss Ernesto Valverde who underlined Neymar’s importance as a key player, before the rest of the dressing room got in on the act.
Messi and Suarez insisted that he is just as integral a part of the famed ‘MSN’ attack as they are, while Pique reminded him of what it means to play for Barcelona and the legendary status he can acquire if he continues with the club.
Actions speak louder than words, though, and Messi relinquished free-kick duties in their pre-season win over Juventus at the weekend to show Neymar that he can share the spotlight, with the Brazilian likely to take more set-pieces in the future.
Meanwhile, Mundo Deportivo report that, while Barca will not offer Neymar a new deal after only signing an extension last year, they are prepared to convince him of his importance another way: by signing his favourite players.
One of the biggest draws for Neymar about joining PSG was the abundance of Brazilians already in the French capital, including his good friend Dani Alves and former Brazil skipper Thiago Silva.
As a result, Barca want to bolster their ranks with a few Brazilians of their own and will target two friends and compatriots of Neymar to keep him happy and settled in Catalonia: Former Tottenham flop Paulinho and, even more importantly, Liverpool playmaker Philippe Coutinho.
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean.