As if we didn’t already know, confirmation has arrived of Liverpool’s stance on Barcelona’s summer pursuit of Philippe Coutinho.
Coutinho remained the Catalan club’s top target throughout the transfer window but each approach for the Brazilian midfielder was rebuffed by Jurgen Klopp, who insisted that his talisman was not for sale.
Three bids, each substantially bigger than the one before, arrived for Coutinho but Liverpool held firm and the player has since dedicated himself to giving his all for the Reds cause this season.
German newspaper Der Spiegel has this weekend published a leaked email back-and-forth between the clubs which not only confirms the fees being offered but also show just how thin Liverpool’s patience was wearing with the series of approaches.
The first offer, according to the email thread, was roughly £72 million but Liverpool’s response was firm, as the Merseyside club informed Barcelona that Coutinho was “not for sale at any price.”
The next proposed fee for the 25-year-old arrived in early August and was £90 million but Michael Edwards , Liverpool’s sporting director, replied resolutely: “I ask you amicably to stop harassing Coutinho publicly and privately.
“No amount of money will change our minds.”
As the end of the transfer window drew nearer, Barcelona returned with a third and ultimately final offer which was a whopping £114 million but that too was turned down.
The correspondence also revealed that Liverpool never put a pricetag of £183 million on the player, a suggestion which was made by Barcelona.
Coutinho has recently returned to competitive action for Liverpool and is in contention to start against Leicester in Saturday’s late Premier League kick-off.
