Barcelona have no interest in Philippe Coutinho even though the player is keen on a move, says Guillem Balague

Reports in Spain claimed Coutinho could move to La Liga this summer

The Brazilian star has repeatedly been linked with a move to the Camp Nou (Getty )

Barcelona have no interest in signing Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho, according to the Spanish football expert Guillem Balague – although the player himself is keen on a move.

Earlier this week, the Spanish newspaper SPORT claimed that Coutinho was Barcelona’s primary transfer target this summer, with the Brazilian apparantly interested in the summer move to the Camp Nou.

The paper also reported that Coutinho’s agent, Kia Joorabchian, had met with Barcelona’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu, while in March Neymar claimed his compatriot would “totally fit” at the club.

“A Premier League player that I would like to have in Barcelona is Coutinho,” he told the Daily Mail. “I believe Philippe Coutinho is a player that would totally fit in Barcelona.”

However, Balague has said that his sources have told him that Barcelona have no immediate interest in pursuing a deal for Liverpool’s star man, even though the 24-year-old is supposedly keen on the switch.

Coutinho is supposedly interested in a move to Barcelona (Getty)

“There are more stories coming out that Barcelona want Coutinho and he is willing to go,” Balague said in a Q&A session with Sky Sports.

“I have no doubt he is willing to go, but Barcelona are not after him.”

“It’s just moves the agents are making to try to convince Barcelona to move for him. But they do not want him.”


 Coutinho beat Neymar and Casemiro to the Samba d'Or Trophy this season 
 (Getty)

Meanwhile, Coutinho himself says he is only focused on helping Liverpool secure a place in the top-four of the Premier League.

Liverpool currently sit third with a four-point lead over fifth-placed Manchester United, and Coutinho said the team are revelling in the pressure at the business end of the season.

Klopp's side are closing in on a place in the top four (Getty ) (Getty)

“It is a very healthy pressure,” he said in an interview with the club website. “All of us see this as a great opportunity for us, so this ends up giving us a feeling of positive pressure.

“We are all well aware of the work we need to do. As everyone knows, everything is in our hands now, so we need to search for the three points in each of our last three games.

“Liverpool is a huge, great club and it needs to be playing in these competitions. Liverpool deserves a steady place in the Champions League, so we are trying to improve this situation and keep ourselves there, make ourselves a regular in this competition again – and that’s what we’re aiming for.”