Barcelona president says ‘no player is bigger than the club’

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has said “no player is bigger than Barca” – four days after they sold Brazil forward Neymar to Paris St-Germain for a world record fee.

Neymar, 25, joined the French club for 222m euros (£200m).

Bartomeu says the money will be spent with “prudence, rigour and serenity”.

Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho, Borussia Dortmund’s Ousmane Dembele and PSG’s Julian Draxler have been linked with moves to the Nou Camp.

Neymar’s departure from Barcelona breaks up the feted attacking trident he formed with Argentina captain Lionel Messi and Uruguay forward Luis Suarez.

He scored 105 goals in four seasons at Barca, winning seven major trophies including the Champions League once and La Liga twice.

The player said he moved to France for a “bigger challenge”, and denied it was motivated by money.

Speaking at the World Congress of Penyes, Bartomeu said: “He wanted to leave. We didn’t agree with that decision but no player is bigger than Barca.”