Let Neymar finish his career at Real Madrid, says agent

In an open letter addressed to the Brazilian's father, Wagner Ribeiro adopted a scathing tone and suggested the issues were due to a refusal to join the Blancos as a teenagerThe former agent of Barcelona star Neymar has responded to the embargo the Brazilian suffered due to tax issues in his home country, ironically suggesting that his ex-client would enjoy a quieter life if he moved to arch-rivals Real Madrid.

Brazilian authorities moved against the forward on Friday, freezing assets worth £33.1 million.

Neymar is accused of evading 63m Brazilian reais (£10.5m) between 2011 and 2013, while he was still a Santos player.

And Ribeiro did not hold back in an open letter to the star's father, published on his Instagram page.

"Take your money, take it to tax havens, legally, of course," the agent advised, tongue firmly in cheek.

"That way you will stop paying taxes in Brazil. Close your businesses, the Praia Grande institute and enjoy your life on the Mediterranean beaches.

"But let Neymar play a few more years of football. Let him finish his career in Europe, preferably Real Madrid."

In the letter, Ribeiro held Neymar's father responsible for the tax scandal, as he ignored the agent's advice to stay in Europe with Madrid after a trial when the striker was still a teenager.

"It was obvious this was going to happen, right Ney?" the businessman asked.

"You never paid for the boy [Neymar Jr.] to play. You decided to listen to his 'juvenile-infantile' desire to go back to Brazil instead of playing in Real Madrid.

"But Neymar Jr, a responsible, charismatic star started to become recognised and businesses in Brazil and beyond wanted his image, and that made you 'rich'.

"In Brazil, when a poor person becomes rich he has to be a donkey. They say that 'You can take the man out of the favela, but you cannot take the favela out of the man', and that has deep meaning for part of society which is used to 'always win.'"