Barcelona star Arthur reveals regret at attending Neymar's birthday bash 48 hours before El Clasico

Stephen Darwin

Barcelona star Arthur reveals regret at attending Neymar's birthday bash 48 hours before El Clasico image

Barcelona midfielder Arthur has revealed that he regrets his decision to attend Neymar's lavish birthday party just 48 hours before a Clasico meeting with Real Madrid.

The 22-year-old, who is Neymar's team-mate with Brazil, was one of many of the Paris Saint-Germain forward's colleagues at club and international level that were present at the event in Paris.

The injured former Barcelona star, dressed all in red and with crutches in hand, partied with his guests as he celebrated his 27th birthday.

Watch Champions League | Soccer Live Streaming | DAZN CA

He also took to the microphone to deliver a tearful speech where he revealed his regret at being sidelined with a foot injury, and that he had wished for a new metatarsal as a gift.

But Arthur has now insisted that he made a mistake flying over to celebrate with Neymar, with the party taking place just two days before he lined up in the Copa del Rey fixture against Real Madrid.

The Brazilian played the full 90 minutes in a game that would finish 1-1 and although Barca would go through to the final courtesy of a 3-0 win in the second leg, Arthur has revealed he apologised to his team-mates and head coach Ernesto Valverde.

He told reporters prior to his side's Champions League last-16 second leg meeting with Lyon: "You learn from your mistakes. I apologised to the coach and my team-mates. It was a difficult moment for me."

Barca will be confident of progression through to the quarter-finals of the competition having kept a clean sheet in the first leg in France, with the game finishing 0-0.

Neymar PSG 2019

They will undoubtedly be cautious of complacency, however, given Real Madrid and PSG were dumped out by Ajax and Manchester United respectively, despite having healthy first-leg leads.

One man who will be desperate to impress is Philippe Coutinho amid speculation over his future at the club.

The 26-year-old has struggled to consistently replicate the sort of form he produced in a Liverpool shirt since making the move to Camp Nou, and has failed to score in the league since October.

He did, however, start in the 3-1 win over Rayo Vallecano last time out and Arthur is in no doubt that his team-mate remains one of the world's top players. 

He said: "Coutinho's a crack, one of the best players in the world. We know he's not been at his best in some games, but we all know what he is capable of."

Stephen Darwin