Sao Paulo (AFP)

The Brazilian star of Paris SG Neymar is at the heart of a new controversy over his behavior off the field, Brazilian media assuring that he would organize a giant end-of-year party for dozens of guests near Rio de Janeiro , despite the second wave of Covid-19.

According to Ancelmo Goes, columnist for the newspaper O Globo, the Seleçao striker was to receive 500 people for this long-term New Year's Eve which would have started on Saturday, not to end until January 1.

Neymar would even have installed a soundproofing system in an annex of his villa to avoid disturbing his neighbors, in an ultra-secure luxury housing estate in Mangaratiba, a seaside resort 130 km from Rio.

Léo Dias, journalist author of numerous scoops on celebrities, for his part detailed the names of Brazilian stars who would perform in concert during the festivities, such as Ludmilla or Wesley Safadao.

The mobile phones of guests would be confiscated at the entrance to avoid any leak in the press or on social networks.

The player's entourage categorically denied, assuring in a statement that there was "no party" in Neymar's villa.

Sources close to a musical group scheduled to perform on New Year's Eve, however, confirmed to the CNN Brasil channel that they would give a concert there.

- The Neymar camp denies -

The Fabrica agency, specializing in events, for its part mentioned in a press release the organization of "a New Year's Eve which will receive about 150 people in compliance with the health standards determined by public bodies", without citing the name of Neymar.

"No !!! It's a Fabrica event. It has nothing to do with Neymar," one of the star's lawyers reacted to AFP in the evening.

He added that Neymar was planning to spend the evening of the 31st with his family.

"He is with his family, with his son and his physiotherapist," he said.

The town hall of Mangaratiba, a town of 41,000 inhabitants which has taken restrictive measures to avoid any gathering during the end-of-year celebrations, told AFP that it had not received "any information about this party".

On social networks, the striker, who has not played since his ankle injury on December 13, against Lyon, has contented himself in recent days to post photos of his family, without any comment about this controversial New Year's Eve , of which he would be the organizer.

Neymar, who has been playing for Paris SG since 2017, was born in the neighboring state of Sao Paulo, but he usually stays in his villa in Mangaratiba every time he returns to Brazil.

According to Brazilian media, this luxurious residence built on a 10,000 m2 plot has a helipad, football and tennis courts, a sauna and a weight room.

It was there that he spent the confinement from March to June, as well as his convalescence for several months after serious foot injuries, in 2018 and 2019.

Brazil is the second country most bereaved by Covid-19, with more than 191,000 deaths according to the latest report from the Ministry of Health.

© 2020 AFP