Liverpool have rejected Barcelona’s improved €125m (£114m) bid for Philippe Coutinho and insist he is not for sale this summer, reports The Daily Mail.
Barcelona are desperate to land the Brazil international as a replacement for Neymar, who joined Paris Saint-Germain in a world record £193m deal earlier this month.
Ernesto Valverde’s side are on the verge of disarray after losing the Spanish Super Cup 5-1 over two legs against Real Madrid and some of their players have already called for new signings to be made.
Coutinho is one of two targets Barcelona want to sign with the Neymar money, along with Borussia Dortmund wantaway Ousmane Dembele, and the Liverpool No.10 wants to move to the Camp Nou.
The 25-year-old formally submitted a transfer request last week in a bid to force through a move to Liverpool but Jurgen Klopp has no interest in losing his best player just weeks before the transfer window shuts.
Coutinho has missed Liverpool’s last few games with a back injury and will reportedly refuse to play for the club again unless they sanction his move to Barcelona.
However, this saga doesn’t look like ending anytime soon after Liverpool today rejected Barcelona’s second bid for the playmaker, which would have made him the second most expensive player in the history of football.
In the last three Premier League campaigns, Coutinho has scored at least three more goals from outside the penalty box than any other player (10).
