REVEALED: Seri's Agent Claims PSG Trying to Scupper Move Simply to 'F**k Barcelona'
Barcelona's collapsed move for Nice star Jean Michael Seri was allegedly down to the intervention of Paris Saint-Germain - the club that snatched Neymar from the Catalan giants.
That is the accusation that has been levelled at the French giants by Seri's agent Franklin Mala, who was quoted in Marca as he alleged that PSG's Qatari owners had a hand to play in causing the transfer to fall apart at the last moment.
Barcelona had appeared on the cusp of securing Seri's signature for a fee thought to be in the region of €40m, but reports after the deal collapsed appeared to suggest that the 26-year-old was not highly thought of among La Blaugrana's coaching staff.
VALERY HACHE/GettyImages
Not so, according to Mala, who has insinuated that PSG's involvement caused a breakdown in negotiations.
He stated: "It was possible to reach an agreement as Barcelona and Nice were negotiating.
"On Tuesday, they were in France, talking about technical aspects but they already knew Seri's capabilities. PSG called Nice three days ago about my client to f**k Barcelona."
Speculation in the Spanish press has suggested that PSG's Qatari owners launched their bid to land Neymar to help their geo-political position in the Middle East and as a way of getting back at Barcelona for switching shirt sponsors at the end of the season.
Barcelona used to have 'Qatar Airways' emboldened on their kits, but changed to Japanese firm Rakuten in a £47m-a-season deal from the 2017/18 campaign onwards after the deal was finalised in November 2016.
Barcelona and PSG have been at loggerheads all summer long thanks to a number of transfer run-ins over each other's star players.
La Liga giants Barca had tried to entice PSG midfielder Marco Verratti to Nou Camp back in June and July but, despite their repeated efforts to land him, were rebuffed in their advances due to the Ligue 1 club's astronomical demands.
PSG soon got their own back - and then some - on Barcelona by securing the shock signing of Brazilian superstar Neymar for £200m, and relations between the two clubs have soured even further since then.
Barcelona are now in the process of attempting to sue Neymar for breaching his contractual obligations with them, and the 25-year-old is readying his own legal case to defend his name and prevent Ernesto Valverde's side from forcing him to them extortionate damages over the allegations.
