Neymar Advises Coutinho to Reject Barcelona

Liverpool continue to insist that they will not sell Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona this summer and that their attempts to sign midfielder and attacker Thomas Lemar and centre half Virgil van Dijk before the transfer window shuts on Thursday night are simply the culmination of their summer transfer plans.

The player, meanwhile, has gotten over his supposed back injury and illness and is expected to feature for Brazil when they take on Ecuador in World Cup qualifying on Thursday, and fans are beginning to wonder if all Liverpool’s talk of holding on to the player was only ever about getting as much as possible out of Barcelona.

Some may have their doubts, but the expectation based on all reliable reports emerging from the club is that Coutinho will stay. And one person who unexpectedly looks to be hoping for that to happen is Coutinho’s Brazil teammate and ex-Barcelona superstar Neymar.

According to reports from Brazil’s Estadio, Neymar has advised Coutinho to reject Barcelona, saying he will not regret Liverpool keeping him in England for another season. If true, there are likely two things at play here: Neymar’s disdain for Barcelona’s board, and a desire to see Coutinho join him at PSG.

Barcelona’s current board has been widely painted as dysfunctional by fans, and many believe the club’s internal issues played a role in Neymar’s departure. Before he left, though, part of the draw of Barcelona for Coutinho was meant to be a chance for the duo to play together.

That obviously can’t happen this summer now that he’s in Paris, but if Coutinho stays at Liverpool for another season, the two might just get the chance to link up. So Neymar reportedly wants Coutinho to stay at Liverpool, at least for one more season. Which works for us.