, SPAIN – DECEMBER 22: (L-R) Coutinho of FC Barcelona, Kike Perez of Real Valladolid during the La Liga Santander match between Real Valladolid v FC Barcelona on December 22, 2020 (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
One of the big headaches for Barcelona heading into the offseason was deciding the future of Philippe Coutinho. The initial plan was to sell him given he’s been a disappointment and to get his wages off the books.
However, it now appears the plan has shifted with the club now being forced to keep the Brazilian given the lack of offers.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona is set to keep not only Coutinho but Antoine Griezmann as well. The only way any of those players will leave is if the right offer presents itself.
Furthermore, manager Ronald Koeman still has confidence in Coutinho and believes he can be an important player for the club next season.
Griezmann had previously been linked in a possible swap deal with Atletico Madrid, which ultimately collapsed. As for Coutinho, his future looked destined for a return to the Premier League or Serie A with AC Milan rumored to be interested.
As it stands at the moment, it appears both players will stay unless, as mentioned, Barcelona are blown away by an offer.
Barcelona’s wage-cutting plan not going as well as expected
As mentioned, the plan for the summer was to offload a number of players in order to decrease the wage bill. Barcelona has made a few small transfers but with the exception of Junior Firpo’s exit to Leeds United, they’ve made little progress with the rest of the players they wanted to move on.
In the case of Griezmann, his departure made sense because unlike Coutinho, he’s been a moderate success. On the pitch, it is evident what he brings to the side. The same cannot be said for the Brazilian.
He missed the majority of last season with an injury and spent the season before that on loan with Bayern Munich. So it is a head scratcher as to why Koeman believes he can still be an important player for his side.
Since arriving at Barcelona, Coutinho has not shown anywhere near the form he displayed while at Liverpool. Some blame can be attributed to former manager Ernesto Valverde and being played out of position.
But he also failed to impress at Bayern Munich, which is one of the reasons the German side did not make the move permanent. Now it looks like he’s going to be afforded another opportunity few other players would get.
It’s important to remember he was a starter last season. Had it not been for his poor form and then the injury, Pedri may have not seen much playing time. Coutinho’s injury allowed Pedri to step into his role in midfield and the rest is history.
As the old saying goes, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If Coutinho does end up staying, Barcelona is going to be falling into that trap and paying quite a lot on a player who no longer deserves the benefit of the doubt.
