According to a report by Melissa Reddy, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has ruled out any chances of a return to Liverpool for Philippe Coutinho. There were widespread claims that Coutinho might make a return to his former club, less than a couple of years after he moved to Barcelona for a then-record transfer amounting to £142 million.
In an interview with ESPN, the German strategist ruled out any chances of his former midfield player making a re-entry into the club. He added that the Champions League performance will not compel the club to spend a substantial amount in the transfer window.
Notably, Coutinho has failed to put up impressive performances in Barcelona and they are looking to reduce their losses by moving him in the ongoing transfer window. This has led to huge rumours of making a return to his former team.
There was immense speculation regarding Coutinho’s transfer to Barcelona. However, he finally moved to Barcelona in January 2018 as he seized a record deal.
Although he has won a few trophies with Barcelona, he has failed to deliver as per expectations and Barcelona are now looking for a suitable replacement.
Interestingly, Klopp remains an admirer of Coutinho’s skills but stated that his return would not be possible keeping in mind the financial limitations.
“In general, Phil Coutinho helps each team in the world 100%. It’s not about that. I like Phil, I think he’s a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it’s not our year for that.” he told ESPN.
“It’s just not possible. As I said, having him would make each team better — us included — but I really hope that he finds his luck at Barcelona. Or maybe he found it there. We have contact, but not that close contact that I know exactly how he is doing, but the rest is only newspaper talk and stuff like that.” he added.
With Klopp ruling out any possibility of Klopp’s return to Liverpool, it is expected that the new European Champions will not have much movement in the ongoing transfer window.
Meanwhile, Coutinho will have to seek for other clubs as a fairy tale reunion with his former employers may not be a possibility.