Stubborn Liverpool reject latest Barcelona Philippe Coutinho bid – reported to be €100m
Spaniards still desperate to land the 25-year-old to replace fellow Brazilian Neymar Jnr who was sold for a world record fee last week
Liverpool have rejected a second bid from Barcelona for influential Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho worth €100 million (HK$919.3 million), British media claimed on Wednesday.
However, the BBC reported that Liverpool have again told Barcelona that Coutinho, who signed from Inter Milan in 2013, is not for sale.
Barcelona believe the Brazilian international has the ability to not only replace Neymar alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in a star front three, but could also provide cover for 33-year-old captain Andres Iniesta in midfield.
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp told Barcelona “to save their energy” last week, claiming the player wasn’t for sale.
Should Barcelona fail to tempt Coutinho to Spain, they are expected to turn their attentions to highly-rated French star Ousmane Dembele of Borussia Dortmund.
Dembele, 20, was involved in a training ground bust up with Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki last week and has spoken of his desire to one day play for Barca.