 "Matra-Hachette’s chairman Jean-Luc Lagardere (right) watching a horse race in October, 1995")
The transfer fee was eye-catching, the salary eye-watering and the impact jaw-dropping. It seemed to be the move and the moment that signalled a power shift, a change in soccer’s established order. One of the brightest South American talents of his generation, heralded as the next best player in the world, moving to a rising force in Paris, drawn by money and glamour to a club long on cash and short on patience.
Thirty years later, Neymar would have much the same effect, the Brazilian turned into the most expensive player on the planet by the untrammelled ambition of
Thirty years later, Neymar would have much the same effect, the Brazilian turned into the most expensive player on the planet by the untrammelled ambition of
