Ligue 1 champions, Paris Saint-Germain have reportedly made a stunning bid for Barcelona superstar, Philippe Coutinho.
Even though the French giants have concerns with the UEFA Financial Fair Play regulations, the club is adamant to bring Coutinho to Paris with a fee close to the world record wage that Neymar receives at the club.
Despite no official approach being made to the Blaugranas, PSG have taken a lot of interest in Coutinho’s willingness for a move, which happens to be very soon after his arrival at the Camp Nou – with the Brazilian’s £140 million move from Liverpool back in January.
The integral part of PSG’s bid to Barcelona will be on how much wages are they willing to offer to Coutinho. A salary of around £500,000 a week will amount to a massive £25 million a year, while Barcelona will be offered a potential transfer fee of £240 million.
The French giant wants to keep Neymar, even though rumours claim that the Brazilian is not feeling ‘at home’ in France.
Thus, PSG are now looking to bring Neymar’s closest friend, Coutinho, in a bid to keep Neymar happy at the Parc des Princes. Neymar and Coutinho came up through the Brazilian junior ranks together, and have established a rather close relationship.
The Paris club know that making Coutinho leave Barcelona will be very tough, with the 26-year-old signing on a five-year contract just this past January. However, Coutinho might be persuaded by the huge salary offer on the table by PSG, and the chance to play alongside Neymar, if a deal is struck.
The Samba star took time to settle into the Barcelona colors after leaving the Premier League limelight from Liverpool. Regardless of that, Coutinho’s maiden season at the club was a success, having won the La Liga trophy and striking a number of brilliant goals.
Barcelona might also be tempted to sell the Brazilian, which can make them realise a profit of about £100 million in just half a year. However, the Catalan giants are keen to stick to Coutinho’s release clause of about £350 million.
On the other hand, Neymar has also been linked with a move to Barcelona’s arch-rivals, Real Madrid. However, PSG are confident that the player will stay if the club brings right players to the club.
PSG will also complete the permanent transfer of French sensation Kylian Mbappe for a whooping £165 million this window, after signing him on a loan deal from AS Monaco last summer.
Even though Coutinho wanted to play for Barcelona due to his wife’s relations with the Catalan city, the chance to more than double his wages might give him a chance to re-think about his future.
