- Philippe Coutinho has reportedly already chosen his Barcelona shirt number
- Brazilian tipped to finally join Catalan giants after summer-long pursuit
- Barcelona expected to make £133million bid for Liverpool playmaker
- SEE MORE: Club CEO: £55m midfielder will join Liverpool on July 1
2018 has arrived with no intentions of handing Liverpool rest bite over Philippe Coutinho’s exhausting transfer saga.
The Brazilian is seemingly edging ever closer to agreeing to become a Barcelona player, with the Catalan giants expected to follow three failed summer bids with an offer of £133million.
A change in tone on Liverpool’s part has somewhat accelerated a potential deal, with the Reds believed to be open to negotiations for the right price.
Coutinho’s expectation that he has played his final game for the club, as reported by the Times’ Paul Joyce, was swiftly followed by Spanish football expert Guillem Balague taking to Twitter to preview Barcelona’s imminent bid.
Liverpool’s No.10 has already chosen to adopt Arda Turan’s No.7 shirt at the Nou Camp, according to Spanish outlet Don Balon.
Though a deal is looking increasingly likely, it’s worth reiterating that an official offer is yet to come in for Liverpool’s star playmaker.
Liverpool appear resigned to losing Coutinho, but remain in the driving seat as far as terms of a deal are concerned.
The Reds boast strong grounds on which to demand a significant fee for their prized asset, not to mention good reason to seek a deal in principle that would see Coutinho stay put until the end of the season.
Three days into the new year and already Liverpool are being forced to consider life after Coutinho.