Liverpool might have saved their skin, for now, from one Spanish side, as they have kept hold of Philippe Coutinho but they seem to be skinning another La Liga side according to Spanish outlet Diario Gol (h/t Daily Express).

The report claims that the Reds have reached a verbal agreement for one of Real Madrid’s young stars in Mateo Kovacic, who is rated at €25m. But the deal will only take place should Coutinho actually move away from Anfield and sign for Barcelona.

There is a ton of competition in the La Liga side as they have the likes of Toni Kroos, Isco, Casemiro and Luka Modric. The lack of playing time is a big problem for the 23-year-old Kovacic, who can play in a number of positions in the midfield.

While the Croatian would not be the same kind of player as Coutinho, should he be given time, the 23-year-old could fulfill his potential and become a world beater.

What is surprising is that the report is from Diario Gol (via Express), the same Spanish daily that has constantly stated that Coutinho is moving away and that we have already accepted that the 25-year-old is going away for a record fee.

Kovacic knows that he has to get a lot of football before the World Cup begins next year and moving to Liverpool would give him the chances, that’s a given.

However, the report has to be taken with a pinch of salt as Coutinho isn’t going anywhere, at least that is what we have been told, and Kovacic agreeing verbally is just some random talk that the Spanish daily has come up with to please the Barcelona fans.

Should we actually lose Coutinho, we would be signing a player better than Kovacic, who didn’t really star for Real Madrid last season. The Croatian might not make a huge dent on our wage bill though, as he reportedly earns £60,000 a week. But that should be the least of our worries since he is unlikely to join us in the transfer window.

It would be one of the shocks of the season if we do replace Coutinho with Kovacic but for now, we can keep counting the clock down as the end of the window is just 10 days away.

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