Barcelona attacker Neymar has urged his Brazilian counterpart Philippe Coutinho to leave Liverpool and move to the Camp Nou in the summer.
According to Joe Strange of Mail Online, Neymar has urged Liverpool’s star attacker Philippe Coutinho to join Barcelona in the summer. The 24-year-old has been linked with an exit from Anfield, and a move to the Camp Nou is enough to tempt any player in Europe.
The Barcelona star believes that Coutinho would easily fit into the philosophy at the club, and go a long way in strengthening the Spanish outfit.
In an interview with the Mail, Neymar said, “A Premier League player that I would like to have in Barcelona is Coutinho. I believe Philippe Coutinho is a player that would totally fit in Barcelona.”
Coutinho has been part of an attacking trio alongside Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino for Jurgen Klopp, and it finally appears that a manager is making significant progress at the club for the first time in a number of years.
The German will be unwilling to let go of the Brazilian, and will instead want to build the entire team around the likes of him and Mane. Also, with him signing a five-year-deal recently to make him the club’s highest paid player in history, it may take something colossal for Barcelona to lure him to Spain.
The Catalan club have a prolific front trio of their own, comprising of Neymar, Messi and Suarez, and Coutinho is unlikely to replace any one of them for a regular spot in the starting eleven. However, he can be played in the midfield three, and could look to create chances for the attacking trident.
While it appears to be a dream move on paper, the chances of it happening are minimal. For starters, in late January, the player played down reports linking him with a move to Barcelona, and stated that he wants to acquire legendary status at Anfield.
Also, renowned football journalist Guillem Balague claimed recently that Barcelona are not looking to land the Liverpool star in the summer. The Spaniard stated that the Blaugrana outfit will fancy signing PSG’s Marco Verratti, but he may be a tad expensive for them.
