Report: Liverpool agrees to sell Coutinho to Barcelona for €160M
Philippe Coutinho is reportedly joining Barcelona.
According to the Liverpool Echo's James Pearce and Neil Jones, Liverpool and Barcelona agreed to a fee for Coutinho, and the Brazilian star is flying to Spain to finalise a deal valued at €160 million (£142 million) as the Reds finally admit defeat. The transfer is apparently expected to be confirmed by Sunday, and the English club will receive £105 million up front with the rest in performance-related add-ons.
Per the Guardian's Sid Lowe, £17 million would be payable for Coutinho's first 100 games at Barcelona, £4.4 million per 25 matches. Another £4.4 million will allegedly be paid for Champions League qualification in the first two seasons, with a £4.4-million bonus for winning the tournament. The playmaker reportedly agreed to a five-and-a-half-year deal worth £12.1 million per season.
The reported fee will make Coutinho the second-most expensive footballer on the planet, behind Neymar, who joined Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona in a transfer worth €222 million.
Liverpool apparently rejected numerous bids from Barcelona in the summer, as the Reds maintained the product of Vasco da Gama wasn't for sale. They allegedly stood firm when a transfer request was submitted the day before the beginning of the Premier League season, but the footballer's desire to join the Blaugrana never wavered, and the English club's position softened.
In August, Fenway Sports Group published a statement on Coutinho, reading: "The club's definitive stance is that no offers for Philippe will be considered and he will remain a member of Liverpool Football Club when the summer window closes." After it closed, Albert Soler, Barcelona's director of professional sports, said: "Liverpool put a €200-million price tag on a member on their squad. Logically, the club decided that it was not going to go ahead with the operation."
Coutinho will reportedly attend Barcelona's La Liga game versus Levante UD on Sunday, and could make his debut when the Blaugrana and Celta Vigo play the first leg of their Copa del Rey tie on Thursday.
Coutinho tallied seven goals and six assists in the Premier League this season, and five goals and two assists in the Champions League.