Everything at Barcelona comes back to Lionel Messi in one way or another, and Philippe Coutinho doesn’t escape from that.
In a Thursday column for Mundo Deportivo, Xavier Bosch, who is one of the more grounded Catalan sport journalists, explains the increased confidence over a Coutinho move.
Bosch hasn’t been afraid to point out Barcelona’s mistakes in dealing with Liverpool, both during the last transfer window and in the run up to the next, but now he’s buying the claims of his more excitable colleagues that things are getting nearer.
Whilst Coutinho arriving from Liverpool would give Ernesto Valverde what he wants, Bosch says Lionel Messi will also get what he ‘needs’.
Combined with the return of Ousmane Dembele from injury, Coutinho’s switch from Liverpool would given more options in attack and leave Barcelona less reliant on Messi’s individual brilliance.
Keeping Messi happy is central to most things at Barcelona, and Coutinho will surely know that already, and find it out further if and when he arrives at the Camp Nou.
