What’s the story?
Barcelona are reportedly desperate to sign Philippe Coutinho in the summer. The Catalan giants have made him their #1 midfield target and are ready to offer Ivan Rakitic to Liverpool as a sweetener in the deal.
SPORT have reported that Barcelona have already made a bid for the Brazilian, but it was rejected by Liverpool straight away. Now, Don Balon report that the club is ready to offer their Croatian midfielder in a 'cash + player' deal to lure the Premier League star.
In case you didn’t know...
Barcelona have been tracking Coutinho for a long time now. The club have been 'courting' the player through various Brazilians in recent times.
Neymar has been openly talking about how he would love to play with Coutinho at Camp Nou and how he would 'fit in' perfectly at the club. The duo have been best friends for a long time now, and the Catalan side have had their star on the mission now.
Ronaldinho has also been on the act of luring the Liverpool star to the La Liga side. The Brazilian legend has confirmed Barcelona's admiration for the playmaker and has hinted at a possible move in the summer.
The heart of the matter
Liverpool are not interested in selling their best player in the summer, but the Catalan side are not ready to give up just yet. They know that they will eventually be able to lure Coutinho to Camp Nou, just like Luis Suarez.
The Premier League side are said to be holding out for nearly £70 million for the Brazilian, but the Catalan side are not ready to pay so much. They are now willing to let go of their star midfielder, Ivan Rakitic to get the deal done.
Rakitic has struggled to get consistent match time under Luis Enrique this season. The Croatian has five goals and one assist in his 23 La Liga outings, meanwhile, Coutinho has a combined 11 goals and assists this season.
What’s next?
Barcelona seem to have set their minds on getting Coutinho regardless of who their next manager is. Neymar has been linked with a move away and it looks like this might just be a way of keeping him happy.
Liverpool will sell Coutinho to the Spanish giants, it's just a matter of 'for how much?' rather than anything else.
Author’s Take
Coutinho will make Barcelona stronger than ever but I just don't see how Rakitic will fit in at Liverpool. He's not the kind of player Klopp likes to have in his team.
