Today in the Philippe Coutinho transfer saga- club legend Steven Gerrard says the Brazilian won’t be able to leave Liverpool and join Barcelona unless he forces the move himself. Stevie G. says that if Coutinho does force his way out, it will create “war” at Anfield.
Multiple sources in Spain reported yesterday that the two clubs reached an agreement, and that the deal is reportedly for €90 million (£81.6m, $105m) in base pay. With bonuses and add-ons, the Coutinho transfer could hypothetically reach €120m (£108.8m, $140m).
Gerrard, one of the best players in club history and a man with a ton of clout at the club, today works in two primary roles- a pundit for BT Sport, and youth academy coach for LFC. The Englishman sees chaos arising from this situation.
“The good thing from the Liverpool fans’ point of view is the manager is desperate to keep hold of him and is trying everything to keep hold of him,” Gerrard said while doing punditry for BT in their UEFA Super Cup coverage.
“The owners want him to stay. This is not a situation where Liverpool need money or to cash in. We’re not a selling club so they’re gonna do everything in their power for him to stay, but at the end of the day it comes down to Philippe Coutinho and his decision and what he’s prepared to do, what type of war he’s prepared to create to get out, because Liverpool won’t make it easy for him.”
Manager Jurgen Klopp has maintained all along that Coutinho is not for sale, but now that Barcelona has even more money than usual to spend on acquiring him (the major cash infusion from the Neymar sale) it’s a deal that seems inevitable. That kind of money, and the opportunity to play for one of the top three clubs in the entire world only comes around once in a lifetime.
Put on the spot and asked where Coutinho will play come the close of the summer transfer window, Gerrard responded: “I pray it’s Liverpool.”
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV.
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