La Liga giants Barcelona are reportedly weighing up a massive bid of £120 million for Liverpool’s Phillipe Coutinho as the Catalans grow more and more desperate, following Neymar’s £198 million sale to Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain. However, they do have huge amounts of money in the bank and could go tempt almost any team and player across Europe.
It was well known that the astronomical amount that PSG had paid Barcelona for Neymar’s services will soon change hands but such an amount for Liverpool’s Coutinho isn’t quite justifiable. Despite the Brazilian being Liverpool’s most important player for the past few seasons, he is definitely not a replacement for Neymar by any means.
Barcelona have surprisingly seen their stature remaining quite ineffective in the market this summer. Following their nightmarish time in Europe last season, the Catalans were expected to go all out to get some of the best players from across the world, but Nelson Semedo remains their best buy so far.
Coutinho’s arrival would definitely improve Barcelona given the huge void left by Neymar but he isn’t a like for like replacement for the mercuric Brazilian. Hence, Barcelona’s reported chase of Borussia Dortmund’s Ousmane Dembele simultaneously makes a lot of sense.
A left winger by nature, Coutinho can also play as a central midfielder and certainly commands the respect of many for his whopping figures in front of goal. He has scored 42 goals and provided 37 assists in 181 games for the club so far and alongside the likes of Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, will definitely be quite devastating.
But, if compared to the other options Barcelona can have as his alternative in the likes of Paulo Dybala or Kylian Mbappe, Coutinho just falls short. If Liverpool does agree to sell Coutinho, which is a possibility given the whopping amount Barcelona are offering, Liverpool can easily facilitate deals of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Arsenal and Naby Keita of Red Bulls Salzburg this summer with whom the Reds have been linked extensively.
And if replacements are taken into consideration then Liverpool still have the likes of Mohamed Salah, Adam Lallana and Ben Woodburn ready to take up that role as and when needed. However, manager Jurgen Klopp has been quite vocal about his decision not to sell Coutinho and with them in the Champions league this season, it could also send a wrong message.
The once Premier League giants are finally overturning their image of a selling club that they have established over the years through the sale of Raheem Sterling, Luis Suarez, Xabi Alonso and Fernando Torres but will Barcelona peg them back this deal?
