Barca President Plays Coy on Coutinho Rumours

Still round and round we go. As rumours continue to swirl regarding Philippe Coutinho’s future, FC Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu came out with some cryptic statements implying that the Spanish team may soon place another bid on the player.

According to Spanish publication Sport, Bartomeu said of Coutinho, "He's a Liverpool player and I have a lot of respect for Liverpool, which we do in the summer is to be very discreet about everything, so we can not confirm or deny anything.

"There will be more players (coming in), one in the middle, sure."

Barcelona’s original offer last week of £72m was almost comically low considering the Premier League’s going rates for their top talent and the fact that Coutinho still has a hefty five years left on his contract. Another complication comes from Neymar’s rumoured €200m move to PSG, which should guarantee some serious cash reserves for the already mega-rich Barcelona.

Neymar’s departure is also interesting because of his connection to Coutinho. It was assumed that Barcelona’s surprise bid on Liverpool’s star was a way to appease the unhappy and lonely Neymar in the first place. With the Brazilian reportedly heading to France, it will be fascinating to see if Barcelona retains their avid interest in Coutinho.

Liverpool and manager Klopp still insist their magical unicorn isn’t available at any price. They have zero reason to sell him at this point, especially since it appears that much of Klopp’s plan for the team this season revolves around Coutinho. Coutinho himself hasn’t seemed publicly unsettled by all of this transfer talk, which would rule out the player forcing a move on his own.

In addition to Coutinho, Barcelona are also rumoured to have their sights set on Eden Hazard and Dele Alli, two other brilliant, talented, and highly rated Premier League stars.

The Liverpool Offside is going on the record to officially endorse the transfer of either one of these two magnificent footballers. Either (or both!) would be excellent additions to Barcelona’s squad.