Neymar 'will always be an option' for Barcelona – Abidal

Eric Abidal has given an insight into Barcelona's plans for Neymar and confirmed his admiration of Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez.

Neymar during his time at Spanish La Liga champion FC Barcelona.

Barcelona will always be interested in Neymar but it is financially difficult to re-sign him, the club's sporting director Eric Abidal has admitted.

Neymar attempted to secure a move back to Camp Nou in the close season, two years after leaving for Paris Saint-Germain in a deal that made him the most expensive player in history.

La Liga champion Barca held talks with PSG but was unable to meet the Ligue 1 side's demands. Lionel Messi suggested some at the Catalan club did not want Neymar to return, though it appears he will remain a target.

"A top player, who has a Barca philosophy and who is performing at a high level, will always be an option," Abidal told Mundo Deportivo.

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"We can make decisions on the sporting level but the whole financial issue, there are things that you can do and others you cannot. The future will tell us. I will not say it would be option number one, because the season is very long, but clearly it can be an option."

Barca reignited its interest in Neymar amid a desire to find a long-term successor to ageing striker Luis Suarez. The search is said to have led it to highly rated Inter forward Lautaro Martinez.

Asked about the 22-year-old, Abidal said: "He is a complete player. I think he is performing at a great level. He is a player we know.

"There are other players who also have a lot of quality... but I don't pay much attention to the player who plays every weekend, I look at others."

Barca did boost its attacking options with the addition of Antoine Griezmann in July and Abidal said Suarez had been briefed on the club's intentions to pursue another competitor for his starting spot.

"I am transparent with the players," the Frenchman said. "Luis can tell you, because last year I already told him that it was going to be like that, that we were going to look for an offensive player.

"He accepted it because he wants the best for the team. Today, I can tell you that there is no priority. The planning will always be done, no matter the position on the field, the only change will be the decision."