Coutinho: Rebellion until the end

Barça are going all or nothing for Coutinho this week, the last of the transfer window. If Liverpool refuse to negotiate there will no time to react. And this could affect the entire season.

For his part, Philippe Coutinho will continue to pressurise Liverpool into agreeing to negotiate and does not want to return to Liverpool. He is desperate to join Barça. He has told Jürgen Klopp, and his relationship with the manager is not as good as has been reported in recent weeks in England.

His rebellion is serious and goes beyond a ‘transfer request’ and he has asked the club not to keep him against his will.

There is another issue at Liverpool, which is the player’s relationship with his teammates. Naturally, they did not like him sitting out the Champions League qualifier against Hoffenheim and know that he wants to leave. Unlike at Barça, where the squad tried to convince him to stay, they have left him alone.

Barça, who have been passive in negotiations, have been sending the player messages daily, knowing that the deal will not be sorted until Friday (when the transfer window shuts in Spain -  a day later than in the Premier League).

Although Liverpool have consistently stated that they will not sell the player out of principle, their transfer operations suggest otherwise. The club have already agreed the transfer of Naby Keita and are working on two additional deals: Bayern’s Portuguese midfielder Renato Sanches and Monaco’s French winger Thomas Lemar.

These two deals would cost Liverpool €120 million and it is this, plus some more conciliatory messages from Liverpool’s owner, that means Barça are still optimistic. The feeling is that the deal will be done at the last minute, i.e. late on Friday night.