A few years ago, this wouldn’t have batted eyelids – but in 2017 – it certainly does…
The debate about who the better player is between Coutinho and Mesut Ozil has been answered this calendar year.
While our Brazilian has proved himself to have consistent end product and a big game presence, the World Cup winner has done exactly the opposite.
SEE MORE:
Great stat shows Coutinho is better ‘Big Game Player’ than Ozil, Silva & Hazard
He hasn’t signed a new deal with Arsenal and is expected to leave on a Bosman transfer at the end of the season…
But Spanish news outlet Don Balon is reporting that Lionel Messi has specifically advised Barca to pursue Ozil instead of Coutinho – who will require a mammoth sum of money.
The report says Messi feels Ozil, who starred in La Liga for Real Madrid, would be a smarter buy, considering the £150m+ it would cost to buy Phil.
If Barca prefer Ozil, so be it, as far as we’re concerned!
Perhaps they’ll pay a small amount of money for him in January and save us a summer full of speculation about Coutinho in 2018…