Transfer Centre

Jurgen Klopp plays down Barcelona general manager comments on Philippe Coutinho

By Giuseppe Labellarte, Reporter | 17 August 2017

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says that there are no further updates on Philippe Coutinho, despite Barcelona general manager Pep Segura suggesting that a deal was close.

Jurgen Klopp has played down comments made by Barcelona general manager Pep Segura claiming that a deal for Philippe Coutinho was close to completion.

The Liverpool midfielder is believed to have been on Barca's radar for several months, with speculation going up a notch after Neymar's world-record move to Paris Saint-Germain.

On Wednesday night, Segura told Spanish outlet RAC1 that the arrivals of "Coutinho and [Ousmane] Dembele are both close", but Klopp insists he has never had any dealings with the Barca general manager.

"I don't know why other people are saying what they're saying. I don't even know him. I have never met him," the German, referring to Segura, told a press conference.

"We have already said what we have to say. No news from me. Nobody told me anything different since we spoke last time."

It has been reported that Barcelona have offered Liverpool a fee of €130m (£118m) in an attempt to push through a deal for Coutinho.