Barcelona are reportedly open to the prospect of selling Philippe Coutinho to Newcastle United, who could sign him on an initial loan in January.
According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, Barcelona are eager to offload Philippe Coutinho in the January transfer window. The Catalan giants are ready to deal with Newcastle United over a move for the Brazilian attacker, even if the initial approach is over a loan move.
Philippe Coutinho joined Barcelona in January 2018, arriving from Liverpool in a dream move for him. However, after a strong start to life at Camp Nou, things soon took a turn for the worse, as he was nothing short of dreadful in the 2018/19 season.
The Brazilian attacker was subsequently sent on loan to Bayern Munich in the summer of 2019. After faring decently in Bavaria, Coutinho returned to Barcelona last year. However, 2020/21 was a season to forget due to a long-term knee injury that kept him sidelined for most of the campaign.
Since making his return, Coutinho has failed to make an impression, struggling to establish a foothold in the first-team scene despite the Catalan giants’ struggles. With things going from bad to worse, Barcelona are desperate to cut their losses on the 29-year-old attacker, who has made 101 appearances to date for the club. And Newcastle United are ready to come to both the parties’ rescue.
The interest from Newcastle is understandable despite Coutinho’s struggles at Barcelona. That is because the Brazilian playmaker would be a huge upgrade on the current attacking options in play at St. James’ Park, thereby making him an opportunity worth considering.
That Coutinho has prior experience in the Premier League with Liverpool could help him rediscover his lost form. And Newcastle have now been handed a major boost in pursuit of the Brazilian international, with Barcelona ready to deal with them over a potential January move.
Having failed in their attempts to offload Coutinho in each of the last two summer windows, Barcelona are keen on engineering a January exit for him, even if it comes in the form of a loan deal. So, it remains to be seen if Newcastle can manage to secure the services of the 29-year-old this winter, as Barcelona look to get him off their books.