Philippe Coutinho is expected to deliver a hammer blow to Liverpool by asking the club to let him join Barcelona, who are set to intensify their pursuit of the Brazilian.
The Reds playmaker has already been subject to a £72million bid from the Catalan giants, which was immediately rejected and met with an insistence from Liverpool that the player will not be sold.
Coutinho, who is desperate to move to the Nou Camp, will sit down with Jurgen Klopp and plead with his manager to allow him to make the switch, according to the Mirror’s Simon Mullock.
Barcelona are now ready to return with an improved offer of around £90million as they look to put Liverpool’s resolve to the test.
It remains to be seen whether the Reds will alter their stance given Coutinho’s mindset, although an initial adamance that he will not be sold is likely to be unchanged as Klopp strives to keep his squad together.
To lose him ahead of such a big season would be a crushing blow to Liverpool’s plans, not to mention adding a new pressure to find an adequate replacement.
Coutinho has so far starred in pre-season with his latest standout performance coming in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Hertha Berlin, in which he set up Liverpool’s third with a stunning lofted through ball for eventual scorer Mohamed Salah.
He is Klopp’s elite player and someone the club must do all it can to keep hold of. Keeping him is far more important than any signing this club makes over the next couple of months.
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