Lionel Messi would love to have Neymar back at Barcelona but insists PSG are unlikely to allow their ace talisman leave the club after just one season.

The 26-year-old left the Catalan giants in a record-breaking €222 million transfer to the Ligue 1 champions in the summer of 2017.

The Brazilian spent four successful seasons at the Camp Nou, winning La Liga twice and the Champions League once, before deciding to move on in order to escape the shadows of Messi.

But after just 16 months in the French capital, speculation continues to mount that Neymar is unhappy at Parc des Princes and could yet seek a return to the Blaugrana. However, Messi admits the likelihood of PSG sanctioning the transfer would be very low.

“I see it as complicated,” the Barca captain said in an interview with Marca.

“We would love him to come back for what he means, both as a player and for the locker room.

“We are friends, we have lived very nice moments, others not so much, but we have spent a lot of time together. However, I find it very difficult [for him] to even leave Paris.

“PSG are not going to let Neymar get taken away.”