It was one of the defining sagas of the summer 2019 transfer window and Neymar alienated many in Paris as he angled for a return to his former club, going as far as to offer €20m of his own money in order to pus the deal through. However, despite the tension, Neymar has shouldered the goal-scoring burden in the injury absence of Kylian Mbappé and Edinson Cavani and Tuchel has come out in defence of the superstar's character.

"Sometimes it's a little hard to see that he's a nice person when you watch him play or from the outside. But he's a good guy," declared Tuchel in an interview with The Guardian. "He has a good heart."

'You have to face the truth and the consequences'

But the German coach understands the Paris Saint-Germain fans' reaction to the turbulent summer.

"The supporters have expressed their opinions and I can understand them. It is their right to express themselves," Tuchel declared. "They're proud of their club and it's not very pleasant to hear your player talk for weeks and weeks about wanting to leave. As I told Neymar, it is sometimes like that in life: you have to face the truth and the consequences."

Injury blow

And it seems that the Brazil star has done just that. Since the end of the transfer window, the Brazilian striker has scored four goals in five league matches, but he will have to wait to further mend fences with the Parisian faithful. The 27-year-old picked up a hamstring strain on national-team duty on Sunday and will likely be out for four weeks, missing Friday's league trip to Nice, the Champions League double-header against Club Bruges and - crucially - Week 11's Classique at home to arch-rivals Marseille on 27 October.