FC Barcelona: Coutinho probably down after alleged change scandal at Barca stars
The Barca chapter is no longer a success story for Philippe Coutinho. Now he should be through with his teammates below.
Philippe Coutinho has apparently finally maneuvered himself offside at FC Barcelona. At least that is what the Spanish journalist Laia Tudel claims Esport3.
The trigger is said to have been a change scandal by the Brazilian during the 3: 3 draw of the Catalans against Celta Vigo last weekend. According to the report, at the direction of interim coach Sergi Barjuan, shortly before the break, Coutinho was reluctant to warm up to replace the injured Ansu Fati.
Instead of Coutinho, Barjuan brought in Alex Balde, and Coutinho sat on the bench for 90 minutes. After the game, Barca’s leader Coutinho in particular is said to have accused his attitude. The 29-year-old himself was surprised after reports of his bad attitude during the 3-3 win.
Coutinho defends himself: “I never missed professionalism”
“In my entire career I have never missed professionalism, I always respected everyone and I also respect journalists, but they construct a lot of things,” he said at a press conference with the Brazilian national team, for which Coutinho in the context of the upcoming World Cup qualifiers was nominated.
Coutinho moved from Liverpool to the Catalans for 135 million euros in January 2018, but he has not yet been able to justify his record transfer. After just one and a half years, Barca loaned the attacking midfielder to Bayern Munich, who did not pull the purchase option for the Brazilian, which was allegedly € 120million.
Back at FC Barcelona, the 29-year-old badly injured his knee and missed the entire second half of the season due to a tear in the outer meniscus. At the moment he is a regular at Barca, sometimes a reservist like against Celta Vigo. His contract in Barcelona runs until 2023, but an early departure does not seem unlikely.