Philippe Coutinho will have to take pay cut to leave Barca

Philippe Coutinho’s departure from Barca this summer is possible but it will all depend on the player himself. Barca know he should go but will not force him to take a decision. It will be the Brazilian himself who must take a step forward to start the exit process. He currently has three options on the table but it will all depend on if he is willing to lower his salary to revitalise his career away from Camp Nou. Barca would love to get his salary off the books but are conscious that he might stay as Ronald Koeman likes him.

It’s clear Barca are not going to make much money for the Brazilian. He’s been out for most of a season injured so it’s unrealistic to put him on the market for a big fee. His salary is the third highest in the squad too, and a loan may be his only escape. He might be worth including in some kind of exchange because his value is 60m euros, even though nobody will pay that.

The player went to Brazil to be operated on and continue his recovery and left everything in the hands of his people. Barca have informed his agents of the movements and interest in him from other clubs.

One of the three clubs interested is Inter Milan, who would only want to loan him with an option to buy. He arrived in Europe via Inter and has a good relationship with the Italian club. However, he would have to take a big pay cut. Barca have negotiated with him on that in recent weeks and the perspective looks good.

In England three are two clubs who are open to loaning him. One is Leicester. Coutinho’s big dream is to return to Liverpool but Jurgen Klopp has no need for him and the doors are closed.

Barca’s idea is for him to return in pre-season and train, while they work on an exit. His agent Giuliano Bertolucci is currently in Europe and his priority is collecting offers for Coutinho. If he cannot go, he will form part of Koeman’s squad.