Philippe Coutinho finds himself in a strange position 18 months after leaving Liverpool.
Philippe Coutinho’s summer appears to have gone from bad to worse after Liverpool snubbed the chance of a reunion.
Coutinho left Liverpool in January 2018, and while he has won two La Liga titles, it must have felt pretty hollow.
Gone is the adulation he used to receive at Anfield. So is the importance he must have felt in the team.
At Barcelona he is just a cog in a machine, a machine which would have won both titles without him.
Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo report Barcelona have received no approaches for Coutinho this summer.
This is despite Barcelona making clear they would be willing to cash in on a player they spent a club record fee on signing a year ago.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp shot down talk of bringing back Coutinho when asked about it last week.
He told Sky Sports: “I like Phil, I think he’s a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it’s not our year for that. It’s just not possible.”
Bringing in Coutinho was an extravagance by Barcelona, and his moderate form there means it’s not something any team in Europe wants to repeat.
If he wanted to escape it, he cannot. He is trapped by his own large transfer fee.
The Brazilian will have to gut it out and show he deserves the hype, money, and praise he always wanted at Barcelona.
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