Real Madrid ‘failed with last ditch £177m bid’ for Coutinho
Areport in Spain claims that Real Madrid tried to hijack Barcelona’s deal for Philippe Coutinho at the 11th hour.
Mundo Deportivo - with suspicious timing - have stated that Real were willing to offer as much as 200m (£177m) to prise Coutinho from the clutches of Barca, but the player’s determination to move to the Nou Camp meant that they were unsuccessful.
As suggested by our friends at the Liverpool Echo, the report could just be aimed at adding an extra bit of gloss to Coutinho’s £142m move, with the switch expected to go through on Monday as the Brazilian becomes the second most expensive player in the world.
The article claims that it is “quite frequent, even logical” for both of La Liga’s big guns to target the same players, even though Real were never strongly linked with a player initially targeted by Barca in the summer.
Liverpool confirmed the move in a statement on their website on Saturday evening.
Reds manager Jurgen Klopp insisted that the club did all they could to keep Coutinho, but the player’s determination to make the move won through in the end.
“It is with great reluctance that we, as a team and club - prepare to say farewell to a good friend, a wonderful person and a fantastic player in Philippe Coutinho,” said Klopp.
“It is no secret that Philippe has wanted this move to happen since July, when Barcelona first made their interest known.
“Philippe was insistent with me, the owners and even his teammates this was a move he was desperate to make happen.”