Barcelona to sign €160 million Coutinho from Liverpool

Philippe Coutinho finally got his wish on Saturday when Barcelona agreed to sign the Brazilian star from Liverpool for €160 million (Dh707m).

"Barcelona and Liverpool have reached an agreement for the transfer of Philippe Coutinho. The player will sign a contract for the rest of the season and five more years with a release clause of 400 million euros," said a Barcelona statement.

The deal for the 25-year-old attacking midfielder will be the third biggest in football after the €222m Paris Saint-Germain paid Barcelona for Brazilian star Neymar last year and the €186m that Kylian Mbappe will eventually cost Paris Saint-Germain from Monaco once the French player's loan period with the Ligue 1 champions is completed.

"It is with great reluctance that we - as a team and club - prepare to say farewell to a good friend, a wonderful person and a fantastic player in Philippe Coutinho," Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp told the club's official website.

"It is no secret that Philippe has wanted this move to happen since July, when Barcelona first made their interest known.

"Philippe was insistent with me, the owners and even his teammates this was a move he was desperate to make happen."

Rio-born Coutinho arrived at Anfield from Inter Milan for £8.5 million (Dh42,350) in January 2013 and scored 54 goals for the club in all competitions, although he won no silverware during his five-year stay.

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Barcelona had tried to sign him in the summer, but his departure is a blow to Liverpool as the playmaker has just returned to top form after an injury-hit start to the season.

He scored six goals in the last seven games of 2017 to put his side firmly in the Uefa Champions League places.

Capturing Coutinho allows Barcelona to move on from the bitter experience of losing his Brazil teammate Neymar last summer.

Coutinho had stayed in Liverpool on Saturday while his teammates jetted off to Dubai for warm-weather training, fuelling speculation that he was set to leave the Premier League club.

He was then photographed giving a thumbs-up as he left London for Spain accompanied by his wife Aine.

Coutinho is expected to watch his new team host Levante on Sunday afternoon at Camp Nou.

Video posted on the club website showed a locker bearing his name had already been reserved for their new recruit.

Coutinho's age is highly attractive to Barca, whose three main stars, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta are all in their thirties. Iniesta, at 33, has shown signs of fatigue this season.

French sports daily L'Equipe reported on Saturday that Liverpool were lining up Leicester's Riyad Mahrez to replace Coutinho, although Britain's Press Association said the Anfield club had contacted Leicester to inform them that the reports were pure speculation.

Liverpool have also been strongly linked with Monaco forward Thomas Lemar, who Arsenal tried to sign before the season.

Coutinho played no role in Liverpool's 2-1 victory over city rivals Everton in the FA Cup on Friday.

Liverpool's winning goal was scored by Virgil Van Dijk, the Dutch defender signed last week from Southampton for £75 million ($101.7 million, 84.5 million euros).

Former Liverpool defender Phil Thompson said his old club had probably got the better deal.

"It's hard to get my head around what Philippe is going to gain because he can't play Champions League football for them, they are running away with the league, and he's got the World Cup at the end of the season," Thompson said on Sky Sports.

"Will he play regularly every week at Barcelona? I'm not too sure. Philippe could have carried on (at Liverpool). He could have been playing in the Champions League."

Meanwhile, later on Saturday, Liverpool said they will offer supporters who bought shirts bearing the name of Coutinho a £50 voucher to help offset the impact of the Brazilian star's departure.

"The offer follows today's announcement that Coutinho will join Barcelona and reflects the exceptional circumstances behind the player's departure," said the club.

"Supporters should present their 2017-18 Coutinho replica shirt at any official club store where the voucher will be issued ... the shirt will not be retained but proof of purchase will be required."