The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Philippe Coutinho

  • EPL Results: Man City, Man U, Liverpool, Chelsea win matches

    EPL Results: Man City, Man U, Liverpool, Chelsea win matches

    Man City vs Crystal Palace 5-0

    Palace held Man City out until the 44th minute before Leroy Sane broke the deadlock and a quick fire double by Raheem Sterling deflated the visitors’ initially stubborn resistance.

    Late goals by Sergio Aguero and Fabian Delph completed a 5-0 route, making it the third time City hit five or more in three successive games.

    Southampton vs Man United 0-1

    Romelu Lukaku broke the deadlock on 20 minutes, converting the rebound after Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster parried his header from Ashley Young’s cross.

    The result maintains United’s unbeaten start to their league campaign, although they are second in the table, behind Manchester City on goal difference.

    Their latest victory was not routine as Southampton piled on the pressure in the second half, and United’s Marouane Fellaini had to clear Oriol Romeu’s header off the line

    Leicester City vs Liverpool 2-3

    Simon Mignolet saved Jamie Vardy’s penalty to clinch a thrilling 3-2 win for Liverpool at Leicester city

    The goalkeeper capped an eventful game after conceding the spot-kick having also been in the spotlight for Shinji Okazaki’s controversial strike.

    Mignolet appeared to be held by the forward when he netted just before the break after Leicester trailed to goals from Mohamed Salah and Philippe Coutinho.

    Jordan Henderson made it 3-1 before Vardy netted but he was then denied from the spot by Mignolet.

    Stoke vs Chelsea 0-4

    Blues continued to show there is life after Diego Costa with another Premier League victory at Stoke, with Alvaro Morata scoring a hat-trick in a 4-0 win.

    Morata, the club-record signing bought to replace Costa, was on the scoresheet again early on before Pedro extended the lead on the half-hour mark.

    Both goals came from defensive mistakes by Stoke, whose manager Mark Hughes had demanded a response from his players following the disappointing midweek defeat at Bristol City in the Carabao Cup. He did not get it, with Morata rounding off the win in the final quarter-hour.

  • Liverpool insists on   £178m for Coutinho

    Liverpool insists on   £178m for Coutinho

     

    Liverpool would only sell Philippe Coutinho for 200m euros (£178m) this summer which priced Barcelona out of a deal, according to the club’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu.

    Liverpool denied putting a price tag on Coutinho earlier this month, Sky sources understand, but Barcelona’s president has reiterated the Spanish club ended their pursuit due to the Reds’ asking price.

    Speaking to Spanish TV, Bartomeu insisted Barcelona would not have been able to meet Financial Fair Play rules had they met Liverpool’s transfer demands.

    “I will not say how much we offered, but (Liverpool) asked for 200m euros,” said Bartomeu.

    “We weren’t going to give €200m or €150m – we decided to step away from such an expensive market, our offer was less than €100m, with add-ons it could have reached €120m.

    “Money has come into football from outside the game and made (the transfer market) more expensive, which explains what happened with Coutinho.

    “We have to make these investments in La Masia and the club’s academy, we must respect the rules. This is why I am happy with the investigation into PSG, which is a request made by European clubs.

    “Neymar? Officially, we learned he was leaving when he told us… at the end of July we saw things weren’t going well, but his father told us it was nothing

    “We believed his father’s word but there should have been more honesty, but we need to be self-critical.”

    Barcelona spent £97m from the sale of Neymar on Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund, but he now faces four months out after sustaining a thigh injury during Saturday’s win at Getafe.

  • Coutinho: Barca put off by 200 million euro price tag

    Coutinho: Barca put off by 200 million euro price tag

    FC Barcelona abandoned their hopes of signing Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool after the Merseyside club demanded 200 million euros (about 183.10 million pounds) for the Brazil attacking midfielder.

    A director at the La Liga side, Albert Soler, said on Saturday the club had no other choice.

    The Spanish transfer window shut on Friday night, with FC Barcelona failing to add to their signings of Ousmane Dembele, Nelson Semedo, Gerard Deulofeu and Paulinho.

    This is in spite of coach Ernesto Valverde stating publicly he wanted a stronger squad after losing Neymar to Paris St. Germain for a world record fee of 222 million euros.

    According to reports in the Spanish media, Barca made a late bid to try and land Angel Di Maria from PSG.

    However, their main target remained Coutinho, who Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp repeatedly insisted was not for sale.

    “Late last night Liverpool priced the player we wanted at 200 million euros, and we decided we would not do it,” Soler told a news conference.

    “It’s a sign of the new era of football, one which isn’t led by clubs. Something has to change. We won’t play along with this new way of understanding football.

    “We didn’t want to risk the patrimony of the club, a club of 150,000 members which needs to be managed coherently and responsibly.

    “We are in a market where you pay 50 million for a goalkeeper. We will not play along with a market that may not have lost its way entirely, but something has changed.

    “This (FC Barcelona) board will not put the club at risk.”

    Liverpool did not publicly respond on Saturday.

    But a source familiar with the situation said FC Barcelona’s claim was false and that no value was put on Coutinho because he was never for sale.

    Liverpool maintain that FC Barcelona were always aware of this.

    Soler said Barca’s main problem in trying to acquire new players was that other clubs were trying to get more money out of them following Neymar’s world record sale.

    He also said football was changing as now wealthy countries, rather than the clubs themselves, were calling the shots.

    PSG, who are owned by Qatar Sports Investments, not only acquired the services of Neymar but also signed France forward Kylian Mbappe on a season-long loan.

    The French player is considered the most valuable young player in the world.

    “PSG came to us with 222 million (for Neymar) and that meant everyone knew we had money.

    “When you go to the market and you have a lot of money, the demands made of you are extortionate. We found ourselves in unbelievable situations,” added Soler.

    “What has happened in the market this year takes us to a model of football different to the one we are used to.

    “We used to be the ones that lead the market and now countries and investment funds are leading it. Countries have become the main agents in the football world.”

  • Liverpool down Sunderland, Coutinho stretched out

    Liverpool down Sunderland, Coutinho stretched out

    LIVERPOOL moved back to the top of the Premier League with a win against Sunderland but could face a run of games without Philippe Coutinho who was taken off on a stretcher at Anfield.

    The Brazillian clutched his ankle after a challenge from Didier Ndong late in a first half where Liverpool failed to turn 80% possession into clear chances.

    Sunderland threatened briefly in each period, with Steven Pienaar and Duncan Watmore taking heavy touches when presented with openings.

    But as Jurgen Klopp’s side continued to press, it was Coutinho’s replacement, Divock Origi, who found the net with what appeared to be a right-foot cross from the left side of the area.

    It sparked relief at Anfield and when Ndong felled Sadio Mane in the box, James Milner converted a spot-kick to make it 14 games unbeaten in all competitions for the Reds.