Jurgen Klopp believes Philippe Coutinho got a fair transfer deal
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes the Reds’ decision to sell Philippe Coutinho in January 2018 was designed to be fair to the player.
This revelation was made on the Pure Football Podcast (h/t Mirror). The Brazilian was made to wait for six months after handing in a transfer request, in order to complete his dream move to Barcelona.
That transfer has failed to work out as expected and the player is now a liability at the Nou Camp. The Catalans are keen to get the player off their books and have placed a price tag in excess of £100million.
Although he continues to be linked with a return, Liverpool has no interest in a reunion and have made it clear to the player’s representatives. (h/t Mirror)
Once a hero at Anfield, the club did everything they could to keep the player. They initially fended off interest for six months before letting the player move on. Klopp has now revealed how the club went about letting the player realize his dream.
“I really respected Phil’s switch from the first second”
Behind the scenes!
The German stated that the player was adamant about moving only because it was Barcelona. He believes Coutinho would not have asked for a move away had it been any other club.
The Brazilian ace handed in a transfer request a day before the start of the 2017 Premier League season. With Adam Lallana already injured, the loss of Coutinho would have made things harder for the Reds.
Although the club wasn’t keen on selling him, they eventually did so after the player spent an impressive first half of the season on Merseyside. Coutinho went on to captain the club and also scored his first hat-trick for Liverpool during that time.
The decision to sell the player has worked out well for Liverpool. The Reds reinvested the transfer fee to bring in Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker.
Both the players are now the best in their positions while Coutinho has fallen out of the spotlight. The duo helped us progress to the next level and made us a truly world-class side.
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Coutinho would return to Anfield a year later. His Barcelona side were unable to hold onto a 3-0 lead as the Reds invoked a fightback for the ages by winning 4-0 on the night. Coutinho was once a star that burned bright, but only in Liverpool Red did that hold weight.
