Barcelona Will Resume Their Pursuit of Liverpool Talisman Philippe Coutinho Next Summer

Liverpool starlet Philippe Coutinho was heavily linked with a move to Spanish giants Barcelona during the summer transfer window. Despite the Catalans lodging several substantial bids for the player, the Reds were firm in their stance and the Brazilian remained at Anfield.

According to  Sports Witness, however, Ernesto Valverde's side will resume their pursuit of the former Inter Milan midfielder next summer having been undeterred by Liverpool's unwillingness to negotiate this year. 

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Barcelona endured a difficult 2016/17 campaign as they were toppled by Real Madrid in La Liga, outclassed by Juventus in the Champions League with a third consecutive Copa del Rey triumph the only saving grace for Lionel Messi and co. 

The departure of Neymar to Paris Saint Germain for a world record £198m fee added to their problems as it created another hole in the Barca armoury. That money was primarily reinvested in the capture of French winger Ousmane Dembele, who has since sustained a long-term injury that will rule him out for several months.

Their main target was Coutinho though and club President Josep Maria Bartomeu was prepared to sanction a deal worth similar to the £135m expended on Dembele in order to bring the Rio de Janeiro-born attacker to Catalonia.

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The signings of Paulinho, Gerard Deulofeu and Nelson Semedo along with Dembele would have exhausted a lot of the Neymar funds, so Barcelona might have to offload some talent to raise the necessary funds to complete another mega-bucks transfer in the future. But it appears the Coutinho saga has not reached its climax and it will heat up once again in July 2018.