La Liga rejects €222M payment of Neymar's buyout clause

La Liga refused to accept the €222-million payment of Neymar's release clause on Thursday, a league spokesperson confirmed to Agence France-Presse, delaying Paris Saint-Germain's plans to sign the wantaway Barcelona star.

"We can confirm that the legal representatives of the player attended La Liga to pay the clause and this has been rejected," the spokesperson told AFP.

Barcelona gave Neymar permission to skip training Wednesday after the Brazilian informed the club of his intention to leave. The Catalan giant then told Neymar's camp any interested party would have to pay his buyout clause in full.

Sports lawyer Juan de Dios Crespo arrived in Madrid on Thursday to present a cheque for the entire amount, ESPN FC confirmed, but La Liga turned Crespo away.

La Liga chief Javier Tebas had vowed to file a complaint with UEFA over PSG's advances, but the league had no legal grounds to reject the sum, according to Marca.

Crespo is now expected to approach FIFA to sanction Neymar's transfer in time for PSG's Ligue 1 opener against Amiens on Saturday.

Tebas raised significant doubts over whether PSG could finance the world-record move without running afoul of UEFA's Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations. European football's governing body has previously reprimanded the French side for breaking protocol, although it ended the club's probationary period in April.

UEFA implemented FFP to limit the losses of the world's biggest clubs and keep teams from spending outside of their means. It also stipulates that a club's wages cannot exceed 70 percent of its revenue, according to Reuters.

Neymar is reportedly in line to make €30 million after tax per season, plus bonuses.

UEFA, however, said it has yet to receive any complaints.

"The transfer of Neymar to PSG will have an effect on the club finances over several years, but the impact of such an operation cannot be judged in advance, notably as PSG could well sell several players for a significant amount," UEFA told the BBC's Richard Conway.

"We shall therefore only make calculations at the end and make sure that they respect the rules."