FC Barcelona: 3 possible landing spots for Philippe Coutinho

Barcelona's Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho celebrates the opening goal the Spanish league football match Club Deportivo Leganes SAD against FC Barcelona at the Estadio Municipal Butarque in Leganes on the outskirts of Madrid on September 26, 2018. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP) (Photo credit should read OSCAR DEL POZO/AFP/Getty Images) /

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HARRISON, NJ – SEPTEMBER 04: Philippe Coutinho #11 of the Brazil National Soccer Team warms up during the training session before facing the U.S. Men’s Soccer Team in a friendly match. The training session took place at Red Bull Arena on September 04, 2018 in Harrison, NJ. (Photo by Ira L. Black/Corbis via Getty Images) /

PSG

Although Barcelona would be better off halting their interest in Neymar after purchasing Antoine Griezmann for well over 100 million euros from Atletico Madrid, they may be unable to resist the lure of signing one of the top three players in the world. Plus, Barcelona were admittedly unstoppable with Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi, and Neymar in attack, so even though PSG have their issues with Neymar in the locker room, this would probably not be a problem in Barca.

But if Barcelona want to pry Neymar away from PSG, they’ll likely have to do a player swap after already spending nine figures to bring in Griezmann. Philippe Coutinho would be among the players that PSG could desire, as he’d be the most proven of the available attackers for transfer.

Coutinho would add to the embarrassment of riches in attack for PSG, and it would be interesting to see how he would co-exist with Angel Di Maria and Julian Draxler in the attacking midfield. Of course, Draxler has been mired in transfer rumors of his own this summer, and while PSG don’t seem likely to sell the German standout, he could become expendable if Coutinho is acquired.

PSG could benefit greatly from Coutinho’s distance shooting and magical dribbling skills, and they might even like the fact that he isn’t as present on the ball. They already have Di Maria, Draxler, Edison Cavani, and Kylian Mbappe as players who can be a constant presence in attack, and that can allow Coutinho to be even more dangerous as he drifts into spaces.

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