Neymar will not take part in Barcelona's tour of the USA. He was due to join up with his teammates on July 25 in San Francisco, but Luis Enrique has instead decided to give him some more time off. The Brazilian star is now scheduled to re-join the Barça first team on July 30, the same day as Dani Alves.

Javier Miguel

Therefore, Neymar will fly straight into Barcelona to start his pre-season. This news has not gone well with tour's sponsors who were expecting the 23-year-old's presence to cushion the blow of Lionel Messi not taking part in the friendlies in America. Messi, like the other players who made the Copa America final, is due back in training on August 3, just a couple of days before the August 5 Joan Gamper match against Roma.

It means that fans around the world will have to wait a little longer to see the world's best attack in action again. If Neymar, Messi and Luis Suarez don't team up against Roma, they will surely form the front three in the European Super Cup against Sevilla on August 11.