The Catalan club, who are financially hit, owes Liverpool a debt of €40m
Barcelona are reportedly planning not to play Philippe Coutinho this season as they look to avoid paying Liverpool an additional fee of €5m.
Coutinho, who is still recovering from his injury, is not expected to return until March. However, the financially struggling Blaugrana are now looking to not field him on the pitch for the rest of the season.
The Brazilian playmaker moved to the Camp Nou for a record fee of £142m, with the Catalan club paying an initial fee of £105m and agreed to pay the remainder on the instalments.
Due to the financial crisis they suffered due to the pandemic, Barca reportedly owe a debt around €1.2 billion to several clubs with Liverpool at the top.
Barca will have to pay an additional fee of €5m to Reds if Coutinho plays another seven games this season.
The 28-year-old had a torrid time at Barca over the course, failing to live up his price tag. After returning from his loan spell with Bayern Munich last summer, there were speculations over his exit with many of Premier Leagues interested in recruiting him.
Ronald Koeman came to Coutinho’s rescue and offered him a big chance to revive his career. Perhaps, the Brazilian flourished until he suffered an injury setback. Teenager Pedri has etched his place in the starting line up in Coutinho’s absence.
