Arthur and Valverde are both backing Coutinho to come good

It appears as if everyone inside the FC Barcelona dressing room is backing Philippe Coutinho to prove his critics wrong. His teammate, Arthur Melo, and his coach, Ernesto Valverde, were both asked about Coutinho's poor run of form despite the fact he's set to start against Lyon. Both said they expected to see him return to form sooner rather than later.

Arthur had this to say on his fellow countryman: "Coutinho is a star. In my opinion he's one of the best players in the world. He knows that in some matches he hasn't shown his best form but we all know what he's capable of and he can help us a lot. What we all need to do is give him our absolute trust."

As for Valverde, he was asked whether he had spoken to the player in order to boost his confidence. The coach didn't want to reveal any such details but did say this: "Questions about my man management with players will remain private." However he did admit that he hoped to see the best version of the midfielder against Lyon. "There are moments when you need to talk with the player and that are times when you don't. We hope to see the best of him, of course."