Ex-Brazil Midfielder Calls Philippe Coutinho 'Overrated' & Favours Another Star for Selecao

Philippe Coutinho has been criticised by former Brazil international Neto for being "overrated".

Coutinho is seen by many as one of Brazil's most important players after a string of impressive performances for the nation over the past year or so, scoring four goals over the past 12 months.

However, according to former Corinthians, Palmeiras and Santos attacking midfielder Neto, the Liverpool midfielder does not currently justify the hype that surrounds him and should not be starting for Brazil, with Neto instead favouring Beijing Guoan's Renato Augusto.

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Neto told Brazilian TV show Os Donos da Bola: “So you know, how many titles he has won with Liverpool? None.

“Just to make it clear to you, because it seems that Philippe Coutinho is Zico, he’s Socrates, who did not win the World Cup.

“But they deserved to win! Philippe Coutinho is not all that you’re talking about. Calm down, slow down. He is a very good player but I prefer Renato Augusto.”

Coutinho was heavily linked with a move to Barcelona, who were looking to secure a replacement for new Paris Saint-Germain signing Neymar.

However, a deal failed to materialise and Coutinho will now likely play out the 2017-18 season with Jurgen Klopp's Reds after a summer of rejected bids and transfer requests.

Coutinho is yet to feature for Liverpool this season, with a back injury given as the official reason for his absence, but played and scored for Brazil during their 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Ecuador last Thursday. The 25-year-old will also expect to play in the away game against Colombia on Tuesday.