Barcelona on verge of signing Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool

Barcelona are on the verge of completing a deal to sign Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool, according to reports in Spain.

Mundo Deportivo claims that once Neymar’s world-record £198 million move to Paris Saint-Germain was completed, Barca stepped up negotiations for Coutinho and a transfer is now close.

.The midfielder’s agent, Giuliano Bertolucci, is currently in London to await the final response from Liverpool after Barcelona’s €100m (£90m) offer was submitted.

Mundo Deportivo claim that the new bid matches Liverpool’s asking price after Barca’s €80m (£72m) offer was rejected last week.Coutinho has not travelled with Liverpool’s squad to Dublin for the friendly against Athletic Bilbao on Saturday night due to a back injury.

And it’s claimed that Jurgen Klopp is already considering replacements for Coutinho with West Ham’s Manuel Lanzini high on the German’s shortlist.

The report also claims that Barca are also closing in on the signing of Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund, while the club will also trigger the €32m release clause of Real Sociedad centre-back Inigo Martinez following a request from Ernesto Valverde.