Is Philippe Coutinho going to Barcelona?

Liverpool’s Brazilian superstar Coutinho is rumored to be on his way to Barcelona. Will the Reds allow their creative kingpin to leave?

Reports emerged last week that Barcelona had submitted a bid of €80 million for Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho. It has also been claimed that the player has agreed personal terms. But is this deal actually going to happen?

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For starters, the player has powerful friends at his potential new club. Luis Suarez linked up well with Coutinho at Liverpool during the 2013-14 season when they came agonizingly close to winning the league. The duo combined to create 42 goalscoring chances, which was the most of any pairing for the Reds that season.

Coutinho has also known Neymar for an incredibly long time, as we can see here.

There’s no doubt Neymar will have been whispering sweet nothings into the ear of his international colleague. Not that he is guaranteed to stay at the Catalan club himself. After a poor season by their standards, PSG are reportedly willing to meet Neymar’s €222 million release clause.

Barcelona also have a genuine need for a player of Coutinho’s ilk. Their legendary midfielder Andres Iniesta will be out of contract and 34 years old next summer. It has long been speculated that Liverpool’s number 10 will be his long-term replacement. If Coutinho could be brought in now, he could learn from the master.

The importance of the player’s personal life shouldn’t be underestimated. Many South American players prefer the culture and climate of Spain when compared to the north of England. Whether this is the case for Coutinho or not, he has embraced life in Liverpool and spoken of how he enjoys living there.

There is no indication from Merseyside that Liverpool are willing to sell Coutinho. Indeed, Jurgen Klopp has spoken of his desire to keep the Brazilian genius at Anfield:

“There are absolutely no plans [to sell]. What our owners say is there is the absolute opportunity not to sell anybody if we do not want to. That means we can bring in other players and it is a good situation. We have a stable squad with a good basis. I can say 20 times, he is not for sale.”

That sounds conclusive enough. But of course, every player is for sale if the price is right. There’s no indication Barcelona’s reported bid is anywhere close to Liverpool’s current valuation of Coutinho, though.

Were Neymar to move for a world-record fee, the Catalan giants would have a lot of money burning a hole in their pocket. Klopp would then find it very tough to stop Coutinho going to Barcelona.

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Liverpool are also looking to secure big money deals for both Virgil van Dijk and Naby Keita, so could perhaps do with an influx of funds themselves. Keita could even be viewed as a replacement for Coutinho if both of their deals were to go through.

Never say never in soccer of course, but as things stand a deal for Barcelona to sign Coutinho appears a long way from happening. Liverpool fans across the world will hope it stays that way.