Hour-by-hour, the gripping inside story of Coutinho’s €160m deal
IT IS an historic transfer, a deal that will be the most expensive in English football history. After his medical at 8am today, Philippe Coutinho will be presented as a Barcelona player in a transfer worth €160million. In the final days before his move,
Sportsmail was given unprecedented access, with Lee Clayton and photographer Andy Hooper invited to join the Brazilian on his journey. Here is what we witnessed.
O PRIVATE ROOM, LES AMBASSADEURS RESTAURANT, LONDON. THURSDAY, JAN 4, 9pm. The extraordinary pull, some might say seductive power, of Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho is laid bare around a table set for 12. He sits alongside his charming wife of five years, Aine, his mother and father, two brothers and their wives and his agent, Kia Joorabchian.
Where will they live when they arrive in Spain? One possible residence has already been chosen by an unlikely source.
The president of Barcelona, Josep Maria Bartomeu, asked one of his senior players which hotel Philippe might prefer during his settling-in period. ‘No, presidente, there is no need for a hotel. I already have a house for him...’
The beautiful residence is in the Bellemar neighbourhood of Castelldefels, a beach town along the coast from Barcelona, with four miles of sand and set back in the hills overlooking the coast. The player who signed for the house is Luis Suarez.
Lionel Messi is another in the neighbourhood. When asked recently if Messi was a good neighbour, Suarez said: ‘Well, he has great security, which helps us all.’
Coutinho explains: ‘He saw that a house next to his became available. He didn’t know I was coming for certain but he liked the idea. It’s a kind gesture. We’ve seen the pictures, the views look amazing. We are in touch all the time and I look forward to seeing the property with my family. I know Luis will help us to feel at home.’
So that’s one team-mate on the left of Suarez, one on the right. It could be a metaphor for how Barcelona’s forward line will play. Coutinho’s role in the team is yet to be discussed; a deeper quarterback passing role or one further up the pitch. That chat with the coach will come later.
The conversation turns to his shirt number. ‘All the numbers have been distributed,’ he is told.
‘What about your favourite, 10?’ someone asks.
‘No! No! No! There is only one No10 at Barcelona (Messi),’ Coutinho replies with a wide smile. ‘He is the best player in the world, the ultimate No 10.’
Coutinho will tell Barcelona he will take the number he is given, without complaint. PEDRO OBIANG of West Ham has just rifled a thunderbolt goal into the roof of the Wembley net to shouts of appreciation, but Dele Alli is being discussed around the table by Coutinho and is a player highly appreciated in these circles. The mood is comfortable, relaxed. Flying times by private jet from London to Barcelona are discussed, but in a casual fashion. The deal to become the most expensive signing in Spanish football history and the most expensive sale from the Premier League is close, although the contracts are still to be finalised and the announcements are yet to be made. Coutinho is keen for the Merseyside derby to be played before anything formal ends the speculation over one of football’s worst-kept secrets. Lucas Leiva of Lazio calls via FaceTime to send his best wishes to his friends. A former Liverpool Brazilian himself, he has been voted Italy’s player of the month earlier in the day. ‘How far is it to fly from Barcelona to Rome?’ he asks. Coutinho’s daughter, Maria, interrupts proceedings by singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star in English to applause around the table. THERE had been at least one spanner in the works of a complex deal earlier in the week.
Liverpool’s Boston owners, having reluctantly agreed to sell their star asset to Barcelona, had then suggested the Catalan club might loan him back to Anfield for the rest of the season. Coutinho is, after all, cup-tied for the Champions League. Financially, this would have worked out favourably. Joorabchian points out that Liverpool’s owners did everything in their power to keep the player.
‘This is not about money,’ Coutinho says now. ‘It’s about the chance to play for Barcelona, to live in Barcelona.’ Barcelona rejected the idea of a loan.
‘Missing the Champions League means you will be fresh for the World Cup, my friend,’ adds Leiva via live link from Rome. ‘It’s not ideal, but you have to look at things positively.’ At 25, there are many more opportunities to come.
Mikael Silvestre, a winner of five Premier League titles and the Champions League at Manchester United, is also in attendance as a recent addition to Joorabchian’s management stable. With guidance from Leiva and Silvestre, that’s 522 Premier League appearances and 64 caps in the room. Coutinho is well supported.
It is also worth remembering that Coutinho has spent six months in Barcelona already, playing 16 games and scoring five goals for Espanyol during a loan spell from Inter Milan, so he has an idea what he is walking into. And what he is leaving behind. PARK LANE, LONDON. FRIDAY, JAN 5, 8pm. IT’S derby day on Merseyside, but the Reds are without their playmaker. Instead, he is in a hotel room cheering for them remotely.
Earlier in the day, Coutinho has more treatment on a thigh injury