Philippe Coutinho is about to join Barcelona.
The Brazilian will become the second-most expensive footballer in history, after Liverpool agreed to a deal worth £142m for the 25-year-old midfielder.
Coutinho joined Liverpool from Inter Milan in January 2013 for £8.5m and made 200 appearances for the club, scoring 54 goals.
Paul Joyce, reporter for the Times, was among several journalists who broke the story on Saturday afternoon.
Coutinho to Barcelona done. £142m.
— paul joyce (@_pauljoyce) January 6, 2018
Coutinho travelling to Barcelona tonight. Official confirmation tonight possible, or tomorrow.
— paul joyce (@_pauljoyce) January 6, 2018
Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona agreed.. more on @TeleFootball soon.
— Jason Burt (@JBurtTelegraph) January 6, 2018
Liverpool have agreed a deal worth 160m Euros (£142m) for the sale of Coutinho to Barcelona. #LFC
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) January 6, 2018
The transfer is expected to be confirmed on Saturday evening, or possibly Sunday afternoon. It brings an end to one of the longest-running transfer sagas of recent seasons.
Coutinho wanted to join the Catalan club last summer, but Liverpool rejected three bids for him. The final bid was worth a potential £118m, yet Liverpool would only have got £36m of the fee if Coutinho reached certain milestones, such as winning the Ballon d’Or. Recent reports claimed that it would take “an improved overall offer, and a more realistic package, to start a conversation with Liverpool,” and it appears that’s just what happened. The midfielder is now the second-most expensive player in the history of football, behind only Neymar, who cost Paris Saint-Germain £198m from Barcelona last summer.
Liverpool were in a strong position in the situation. Coutinho had four years remaining on his contract, with no buy-out clause. However, the player pushed hard for a move this month, and Liverpool have decided to cash-in now, rather than wait until the end of the season.
Barcelona are nine-points clear at the top of La Liga, and Coutinho is ineligible to play for them in the Champions League this season.
