Former Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho continues to not live up to the £105 million Barcelona spent to take him away from Anfield in the 2018 winter transfer window, let alone becoming the replacement for Andrés Iniesta as they might have once imagined. And so, barely one and a half years later, Barca are looking to undo this mistake.
However, according to ESPN, any parties interested in helping Barcelona should be ready to shell out “upwards of £90 million” for the player. ESPN’s source claims that there is interest from “key people”, with Manchester United and Chelsea linked.
Sounds like the agents are working hard to drum up some interest.
Despite his desire to stay, @FCBarcelona is willing to sell @Phil_Coutinho for £90M. #TransferTalk #ESPNCaribbean https://t.co/58Vj19PNe6
— ESPN Caribbean (@ESPN_Caribbean) March 23, 2019
Coutinho has been on the receiving end of frequent criticism recently at club and national team level as well. After enduring boos from Barcelona fans two weeks ago, he was blamed for Brazil’s poor performance against Panama in a disappointing 1-1 draw this weekend, forcing national team coach Tite to defend him.
If there is one “good” thing from the transfer ban, it’s that it stops us from making this kind of bet.