Barcelona star breaks silence about transfer amidst interest from Manchester United interest.
Barcelona star Philippe Coutinho has struggled to nail a starting spot in the starting lineup following an expensive 142 million euro move from Liverpool during the 2018 winter transfer window. The Brazilian has fallen behind the pecking order of Ousmane Dembele in the wings and the likes of Arturo Vidal and Arthur Melo in the midfield department.
Reports have suggested that the former Inter Milan attacking midfielder has been linked with the English heavyweights Chelsea and Manchester United over the past few months. The 26-year-old insisted that he is happy at his current club Barcelona and dismissed any moves to the English duo in the future.
“My head is exclusively in Barcelona. Returning to England now does not fit into my plans. This is my second season here. I have won titles but I am always an ambitious and demanding player. So, I want more and more. But I’m happy. I wanted to play in Spain and I’m at the best club in Spain.” said Coutinho.
Since moving to the club last year, the Brazilian has made 66 appearances for the club, scoring twenty times and finding his teammates on eleven times. Coutinho has started 19 of Barca’s 31 La Liga matches this season, and was in the line-up for Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Atletico Madrid that leaves them 11 points clear at the top of the league with seven games remaining.
Even though he has been disappointing, Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu has said that the club wants to keep him despite his poor form off late. There is no doubt about the quality available at stake, but the Brazilian needs to be operated in his favourite position which would bring the best out of him.
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What’s next?
Following the huge victory against Atletico Madrid, Barcelona will now play Manchester United in the Champions League Quarterfinals on Wednesday at Old Trafford. The second leg will be played at Nou Camp six days later as the Blaugrana prepare to lift the European trophy this campaign.
