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Report: Liverpool rejects Barcelona's €100M bid for Coutinho

Ed Sykes / Reuters

Barcelona's latest attempt to strong-arm Liverpool into a deal for Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho has reportedly failed.

The Reds dismissed an improved bid from the Blaugrana worth an astounding €100 million on Wednesday, according to multiple reports, staying true to their position that Coutinho is not for sale.

Barcelona's revised package included €85 million up front and a further €15 million in add-ons, sources told Sky Sports News. That proposal was apparently turned down immediately.

Liverpool now considers the matter closed, the BBC's Ian Dennis added.

The bidding began after news broke that Neymar had decided to join Paris Saint-Germain in a world-record transfer. Coutinho emerged as a suitable replacement for his international teammate at the Camp Nou, and has long been linked with a move to the Catalan capital.

Despite Barcelona's improvement on its initial €80-million tender, Liverpool has resisted any temptation to flog off a player who only recently signed a new long-term contract.

"I can understand that Coutinho is so highly rated," manager Jurgen Klopp said last week, "but (Barcelona) can save their energy."

Coutinho would relish the opportunity to play for Barcelona, The Liverpool Echo's James Pearce reported earlier this week, but only if Liverpool agreed to a fee and sanctioned his departure. Pearce's understanding is that Coutinho doesn't want to betray the club that helped resuscitate his career following a troubling spell in Italy with Inter.

Although he has a back issue that could rule him out of Liverpool's Premier League curtain-raiser against Watford, the 25-year-old reported to Liverpool's training facility in Melwood on Wednesday to undergo treatment.

Barcelona faces a similar task in convincing Borussia Dortmund to sell dribbling wizard Ousmane Dembele. The German club has allegedly informed its Spanish counterpart that nothing short of a €150-million bid will do.

Ernesto Valverde's side has €222 million to spend following Neymar's big-money switch to PSG, although club president Josep Maria Bartomeu said the sum won't all go to new signings.

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