Coutinho thanks Liverpool as his Barcelona dream comes true
● Midfielder says Merseyside club ‘understood what I wanted’ despite effort to keep him
Philippe Coutinho officially signed with Barcelona yesterday and thanked the club for their patience after the disappointment of the failed negotiations last year.
Liverpool rejected repeated bids by Barcelona in August for Coutinho, but the clubs finally reached an agreement at the weekend for a deal worth up to (£142m), making the Brazilian playmaker the second most expensive players in history.
“I just want to thank the club for its patience and its effort,” Coutinho said. “I’m very happy, this is a dream come true for me and I hope to live up to the expectations.”
Coutinho was introduced to the fans at Camp Nou after signing his contract along with club president Josep Bartomeu, but his official debut will be delayed by about three weeks because of a right leg muscle injury confirmed during his medical after arriving from England.
The 25-year-old had been playing regularly in Liverpool butmissedtheteam’sweekend match because of the injury.
Coutinho won’t be allowed to play for Barcelona in the Champions League for the rest of the season because he has already played for Liverpool in the competition.
“I won’t be able to play some matches now, but it’s a fiveyear contract, so I’ll have plenty of time to help the club in the future,” he said. “Sometimes you don’t get another opportunity like this, to join Barcelona, so I didn’t think twice.”
He thanked Liverpool for agreeing to negotiate with the Spanish club.
“They understood that it was what I wanted,” Coutinho said. “They did all they could to try to keep me, but in the end they understood that it was my dream, and the dream of my family, to come here.”
Coutinho had already shown his desire to join Barcelona in last year’s transfer window but Liverpool refused to release him at the time unless the Spanish club paid €200m (then £175m). Barcelona said it would have been an “irresponsible” financial risk for the club.
“It hasn’t been easy, but his desire to come and his patience were key,” Bartomeu said. “We need to thank Liverpool for agreeing to negotiate, because otherwise this wouldn’t have been possible.
“We are thrilled that one of the best players in the world is now with Barcelona.”
Coutinho, who is reported to have paid £9m – rising to £11.5m – out of his own pocket to facilitate the transfer, has cost Barcelona an initial £105m up front with a further £37m in achievable add-ons.
The fee is second only to the £200.6m Paris St Germain paid Barcelona for Neymar back in the summer, although the £142m will be eclipsed when Kylian Mbappe’s loan spell at PSG from Monaco is made permanent at the end of the season.
“The interest of the club has always been to take Coutinho to Barcelona,” said Barcelona vice-president Jordi Mestre. “The difference is that there has been a substantial reduction in the cost of this transfer.
“There has been a very important reduction, even though we cannot publicly give the figures. We are not going to discuss the numbers. The important thing is we have the player here. If I reveal numbers I will be breaking our agreement with Liverpool.”
Mestre also appeared to confirm reports the Brazil international had contributed some of his own money to make the deal happen.
“Philippe, welcome. We know that you have made a personal and economic effort,” he added. “In the last months we have dreamed of this moment, we wish you the best, which is the best for all.”
Coutinho’s move to Spain came despite Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, issuing a statement in August insisting “no offers would be considered”. That stance softened in recent weeks when it became apparent the playmaker was determined to push through a move, and manager Jurgen Klopp decided not to keep an unhappy player.
“Sometimes you don’t get another opportunity like this, to join Barcelona, so I didn’t think twice”
PHILIPPE COUTINHO