Barcelona are waiting to see what moves Newcastle United can make in January as they look to get rid of Philippe Coutinho.
That’s according to Sport, who say the Spanish side would now accept a loan with a compulsory purchase option just to get rid of the Brazilian.
They explain that Coutinho is now back on the sales list at the Camp Nou after Ronald Koeman’s sacking, with the Dutchman the only reason he was in the side.
He advocated for Coutinho in the summer when Barcelona tried to sell him unsuccessfully, and he was a regular under him when available.
Thus the idea is that he can leave in January, something the club already tried to do in the past unsuccessfully.
That’s because Coutinho’s reputation has been affected by his poor spell with Barcelona, where injuries and a lack of form have meant he’s failed to live up to his huge price tag, and the suitors have slipped away.
He’s also on a ‘million-dollar salary’ at the club, and they are keen to get rid of in anyway possible to help their finances.
Indeed, a ‘definitive solution’ has to be found, and Barcelona’s idea is to transfer him ‘once and for all’ if they can.
There are a lack of players on the market, though, and so they are ‘very much waiting’ for Newcastle to make a move.
They’ve been linked heavily since their takeover by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, with it felt Coutinho could be an ideal marquee signing to kick off a new era at Newcastle.
Barcelona are hoping to take advantage of that and are even willing to sanction a loan deal, so long as it would be turned into a permanent exit come the summer.
