Everton and Arsenal are waiting to see how Philippe Coutinho recovers from his latest injury before making a move for him.
That’s according to Sport, who say Barcelona know it will be tough to find a club willing to pay a transfer fee for the Brazilian.
The Catalan giants are keen to sell their record signing this summer as they look to reduce costs at the club and bring in transfer funds for their own business.
Offloading Coutinho permanently would bring in both a big sum and reduce the wages significantly, but finding suitors for him is tough given he’s managed just 23 goals and 14 assists in 90 games since his arrival at the Nou Camp.
Another issue is his injury history, with the midfielder still out after undergoing surgery on a knee injury picked up at the end of 2020.
That injury is already causing problems for Barcelona in their attempts to get rid, say Sport, who say Barca’s chances of finding a ‘transfer-paying club are slim’.
Arsenal and Everton have both been ‘mentioned’ as suitors, but they are ‘waiting’ to see how Coutinho ‘evolves’ from his injury.
Neither of them want to be caught out paying for a player who may not fully recover from his current problem, particularly given his time in Spain has not been anywhere near a success up to that point.
Indeed, as far as the newspaper are concerned, ‘everything indicates’ that Barcelona will have to ‘settle for a loan deal’ just to free up some of the former Liverpool man’s wages.
Which means Everton and Arsenal could potentially get themselves a bargain later this summer, provided Coutinho can work his way back to full fitness first.
