Coutinho disrespected Liverpool, it’s time to move on
Well, it’s finally happened. Philippe Coutinho is no longer a Liverpool player after joining Barcelona for £142 million. The Brazilian has been in great form so far this season scoring 12 goals and making eight assists in all competitions. After losing such an important player it is now up to Liverpool to react accordingly.
As a Liverpool fan, this hurts. To sell one of your best players halfway through the season when you’ve reached the knockout stages of the Champions League, you’re challenging for a top-four place and have ambitions to win the FA Cup isn’t the sign of a top club.
But it seems like this decision was all up to Jürgen Klopp. Klopp always wants 110% from his players and obviously, Coutinho wasn’t committed to Liverpool. He has disrespected the club and gone about this move in all the wrong ways. He has faked injuries and refused to play in big games and his new club have used some of the most shocking and disgraceful methods to bring him in that I have ever seen and even though this hurts, I stand with Klopp. No player is bigger than the club.
It’s all up to Liverpool now to keep the momentum going and brush this off. A replacement is needed right now. Liverpool don’t have the same creative spark without Coutinho and if they want to accomplish their goals for the season he has to be replaced this month. The main name flying around at the moment is Monaco’s Thomas Lemar. Lemar is a fantastic player and would add to the side everything that Coutinho added. Goals, assists, dribbling ability, longshots, eagle-eyed passing and a threat from free kicks. And just like Coutinho, Lemar can play on the wing or in a midfield three.
Monaco have put a £90 million price tag on the Frenchman’s back, but are reluctant to sell this month, or so they say. This is the same club that loaned out the world’s top young talent to their rivals to help them out with financial fair play. They also sold the like of Benjamin Mendy, Bernardo Silva and Tiemoué Bakayoko, so if the price is right then Liverpool should be able to convince them to sell this month.
Make no two ways about it, this is the biggest challenge Klopp faces as Liverpool manager and if he wasn’t at the helm fans would be incomplete and utter meltdown right now, but I trust Klopp to get this right. This would be the sort of event that sets Liverpool back a few years, but not under Klopp. He will get this right, I’m sure of it. The club needs to start winning trophies to convince top players to stay and I’m sure that will start happening under Klopp.
Some called for Liverpool to hold firm until the summer, including me, but when you read Klopp’s statement about Coutinho’s departure it’s clear that it was probably best for him to leave.
Philippe was insistent with me, the owners and even his teammates this was a move he was desperate to make happen.
He would tell anyone who would listen how much he wanted this move and we’ve seen how hard it is in the past to keep South Americans away from Barcelona and Real Madrid, so this isn’t on Klopp or FSG.
And to the people comparing this to when Luis Suarez left, well he left behind Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert, Fabio Borini and Brendan Rodgers, not Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mané, Mohamed Salah and Klopp. We’ll be alright.
The dark cloud that is the Coutinho transfer sage is finally gone and now it’s time to move forward. It’s a shame how it all ended but it is what it is.
Now time to bring in the right replacements and finish the season off strongly. As Klopp said in reaction to Coutinho’s transfer.
I have been here long enough now to know in the history of Liverpool, key players have left before, but the club always goes on. You cannot transfer the heart and soul of Liverpool Football Club, although I am sure there are many clubs who would like to buy it.
And after reading his statement I am in no doubt that he is the man to take Liverpool forward. We will be just fine under his leadership. We’re in very good hands. So goodbye and good riddance. Screw Coutinho, up the Reds.