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What’s the story?
Barcelona are yet to recover from the shock transfer of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain, with news surfacing that the club have taken legal action against the Brazilian for his failure to fulfill his contract as the club looks to recoup some of the exorbitant sums it paid to the 25-year-old.
However, just when it seemed that Barcelona had given up on their pursuit of Liverpool ace Philippe Coutinho, Sky Sports report that the Blaugrana are preparing a new massive £138m bid for the Brazilian's services.
It was earlier reported that the Catalan giants had given the Anfield outfit until 7 PM on Sunday (20th August) to accept their £118m bid for the 25-year-old and had given up on their pursuit of the Brazilian upon not receiving any communication from Liverpool.
In case you didn’t know…
Neymar completed a shocking €222m move to Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month, which smashed the world transfer record by a colossal margin, so much so, that it was more than double of the previous world record transfer.
The Brazilian's loss has left a gaping hole in his team, who suffered a humiliating 5-1 loss against Real Madrid over two legs of the Supercopa de Espana.
Barcelona have made no secret of the fact that they are pursuing Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho and Borussia Dortmund's Ousmane Dembele, but a deal for either is yet to be finalized.
The heart of the matter
Barcelona had previously submitted a £118m bid for Philippe Coutinho, which included £37m in add-ons, in addition to the £81m that the Catalan giants were willing to pay up front. The Camp Nou outfit had given Liverpool a deadline until the evening to respond to their offer, after which they would drop their interest in the Brazilian.
However, contrary to reports that the club had withdrawn their interest in Coutinho, Sky Sports claim that the club are ready to launch a new and improved £138m bid for the Brazilian, which will include an upfront payment of £101m, coupled with £37m in performance based add-ons.
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Author's Take
Barcelona definitely need to make a couple of extremely good signings if they are to realistically challenge Real Madrid for the La Liga title or the UEFA Champions League.
The loss of Neymar has exposed many hidden weaknesses in the squad and the club need to address it at the earliest. Whether spending £138m for Philippe Coutinho is justified is up for debate but one thing is for sure, this transfer saga is going to go down to the wire.
