Former Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho agreed to join Tottenham Hotspur last summer but negotiations between the club and Barcelona broke down meaning the deal was off, according to Spanish outlet Sport (via Ricky Sacks).
The Brazilian was sold to Barcelona by current Premier League leaders Liverpool in 2018 for £130.5m (via Transfermarkt.co.uk) and has since joined Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich on loan. The 27-year-old has appeared 22 times in the German top flight this season but has only been selected from the start in 63% of their league fixtures.
Should Spurs have broken the bank to sign Coutinho in the summer?
Yes
No
What have these Spurs fans made of the reports that they came close to bringing the attacking midfielder to North London?
Probably would’ve meant no Lo Celso if we signed him, which is something to keep in mind. Still, the people running our club continue to hold us back.
— Joe (@JoeGTHFC) March 18, 2020
Highly doubtful.
— Kez (@12Kez12) March 18, 2020
Youre just making everything Worse
— Marcus Daatland (@DaatlandMarcus) March 18, 2020
Levy won’t dig deep to push this club forward
— Thomas (@tomgordon58) March 18, 2020
Our transfer policy is pic.twitter.com/6YuKWzN0pZ
— Starspurs2017 (@JagjeetUppal) March 18, 2020
Common denominator Levy.
— Brainspurs2019 (@brainspurs2019) March 18, 2020
One common person in charge of transfers. No wonder we haven’t won a trophy since 2008
— To Dare is too Dear (@RyanMacFarland) March 18, 2020
What do we think?
Coutinho is currently valued at £63m according to Transfermarkt.co.uk, therefore it’s fair to assume Barcelona may have been looking for a significant fee in order to allow the player to leave. It’s understood that Bayern Munich have an option to buy the playmaker but that they will not exercise that right and plan on sending him back to Spain at the end of the season (via Bild). In which case, a Premier League return could be on the cards although it’s clear these supporters don’t have any faith their chairman is willing to make it happen.