Coutinho sale launched Liverpool European elite return
LONDON: Liverpool have grown used to seeing their prized assets snatched away by Spanish giants over the past decade, but the sale of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona has helped lay the foundations for a successful rebuild at Anfield.
Coutinho, who has struggled to match the expectations of his £142 million ($183 million) price tag, will come up against his former team at the Camp Nou on Wednesday as Liverpool travel to Catalonia for the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on the back of a 10-game winning run.
Liverpool learned their lesson from the departures of Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano to Madrid and Barcelona that quickly dismantled the titlechallenging team put together by Rafael Benitez and the devastating effect of losing Luis Suarez to Barca had five years ago.
With the Spanish champions desperate for star power when Neymar walked out to join Paris Saint-Germain in August 2017, the Reds hierarchy dug their heels in and drove the price up for the Brazilian.
Coutinho finally got his dream move in January 2018, but by that time the centrepiece to the construction that has seen Jurgen Klopp reawake the five-time European champions as a force on the continent had been put in place.
Virgil van Dijk's £75 million move from Southampton made the Dutchman the world's most expensive defender ever and was roundly questioned at the time.
However, his impact has been so transformational on Liverpool's hitherto leaky backline that he became the first defender in 14 years to be crowned the Premier League players' player of the year on Sunday.
"From the first moment I was so excited about the opportunity to work together and now you are the man," said Klopp in his congratulatory message to his talismanic centre-back.
Coutinho's five years at Anfield produced plenty of spectacular goals, but he did not win a trophy and Liverpool only even qualified for the Champions League twice in that time.
Van Dijk's first five months helped nail down a top-four Premier League finish and a run to last season's Champions League final, which ended in a 31 defeat to Real Madrid thanks to two huge errors from goalkeeper Loris Karius. - AFP