Barcelona unlikely to sign Philippe Coutinho in January

Bengaluru, October 19: Barcelona are unlikely to sign Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho in the January transfer window as per English media, despite claims by the Catalan club's chief executive that a deal could be done.

The Blaugrana made as many as three bids for Coutinho last summer, but all three offers (the last of which was believed to be around €130 million) were turned down by the Reds.

Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group stated in a club statement that Coutinho will not be sold at any price and they maintained their stance despite Barcelona offering loads of money.

Coutinho was keen on a move to the Catalan club and was led to believe that it was a case of now or never as the Catalan club sought to replace Neymar with both he or Ousmane Dembele, who did arrive at Camp Nou from Borussia Dortmund for an initial €105million.

“We are ready to buy Coutinho in the winter market, or any player the technical staff request,” Barca chief executive Oscar Grau said last week.

"But it is important to adjust ourselves, so if there are to be arrivals, there must be exits as well. We must forget about the price paid for Neymar last summer. After taxes we received about €188m in income and a direct financial impact on the club’s treasury of €144m.”

Barcelona will look to offload Arda Turan and probably also Paco Alcacer, although the Catalans are unlikely to get big fees for either player. Andre Gomes also garners interest, but he has had opportunities under coach Ernesto Valverde and may opt to stay.

This means Barcelona are unlikely to make the funds they need to sign the Liverpool star. Even if they can, Liverpool remain adamant that Coutinho will not be sold this season and their stance is unlikely to change.