It’s a transfer saga that rumbled on throughout the summer, but eventually Philippe Coutinho remained a Liverpool player despite interest from Barcelona.
The Brazilian international handed in a transfer request to push through a move, as per The Guardian, but ultimately a transfer fee was never agreed upon and no deal was reached for him to move to the Nou Camp.
According to Sky Sports pundit Guillem Balague though, the saga could be reignited in the January transfer window, and he believes he knows the fee that Barcelona are willing to put on the table.
He claims that they’ll make an €80m offer for Coutinho, but given that Liverpool rejected a bid of £114m over the summer, as reported by BBC Sport, it’s difficult to see the Premier League outfit accepting such an offer.
“Barca will bid €80m, it’s just for Liverpool to decide,” he told Sky Sports. “Has their resolve softened? Or will they stay strong again like the summer?”
Ultimately, it looks as though the Catalan giants will refuse to give up on the idea of signing Coutinho, and it will be up to Liverpool to decide as to whether or not they should cash in now and allow their influential playmaker to move on.
Coutinho has been professional in reintegrating back into the team since the summer, but if he desires a switch to Barcelona still, then surely the best thing for all parties concerned is to reach an agreement.
It would be a blow for Liverpool if they do end up accepting less than what they were offered in the summer, but should Barca put €80m on the table, it would allow Jurgen Klopp to strengthen his squad as he certainly has other weaknesses in the team that need to be addressed.
In contrast though, it will be bitterly difficult to replace a player like Coutinho, with the 25-year-old scoring four goals and providing three assists in nine appearances so far this season.