Gerard Pique pays tribute to departed Neymar

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has paid tribute to "little brother" Neymar following his departure for Paris Saint-Germain.

The Brazilian officially joined the French side last night in a world-record £200m deal that will see him earn £537k a week after tax over the duration of his five-year contract.

A fortnight ago Pique had insinuated that Neymar would be staying at Camp Nou but in the wake of his exit, the Spaniard took to Instagram to wish him well in France.

Desde que llegaste, te vi como mi hermano pequeño. Todo lo que hacías, tu forma de entender la vida y el fútbol. Éramos muy parecidos y conectamos enseguida. Ha sido un placer enorme tenerte a mi lado durante estos años. Me quedo con todos los momentos que hemos pasado juntos, dentro y fuera del terreno de juego. Estoy feliz de que lo hayas ganado todo vistiendo la camiseta del Barça. Esto quedará para siempre. Jugadores como tú hacen más grande este Club y su historia. Espero que te vaya genial en el futuro. Te mereces que los sueños que te quedan por cumplir se te hagan realidad en París. Y para terminar, recuerda hacer siempre lo que hacía nuestro amigo JC: MAGIA. Te quiero, Gerard.

A post shared by Gerard Piqué (@3gerardpique) on Aug 4, 2017 at 3:13am PDT

"Since you arrived, I saw you as my little brother," he wrote. "Everything you did, your way of understanding life and football. We were very similar and connected right away.

"It has been a great pleasure to have you by my side during these years. I stay with all the moments we have spent together, on and off the pitch. I'm happy that you've earned it all wearing the Barça shirt. This will be forever. Players like you make this club and its history bigger.

"I hope you do great in the future. You deserve that the dreams that remain to be fulfilled you become reality in Paris. And finally, remember to always do what our friend JC: MAGIC did. I love you, Gerard."

During his four years with Barcelona, Neymar won two La Liga titles, the Champions League and three Copas del Rey.