Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho says his move to Barcelona is a “dream come true” before his official presentation at the Nou Camp on Monday.<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old is set to join the Spanish giants after a\u00a0\u00a3142m deal was agreed\u00a0with Liverpool on Saturday.<\/p>\n
He took part in a brief photo session at the Nou Camp after\u00a0Barcelona’s 3-0 win\u00a0against Levante on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Coutinho will officially sign his contract at 11:30 GMT on Monday before being presented to the public.<\/p>\n
“Hi Barca fans, I am already here, it is a dream come true and I hope to see you tomorrow, ” he said in a video message on\u00a0Twitter.<\/i><\/p>\n
Later, in an interview with BarcaTV, Coutinho added he was excited to be soon playing alongside the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.<\/p>\n
“It is incredible to know that I am going to live with idols, players with a lot of history,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Footballers like Leo Messi, Luis Suarez, [Andres] Iniesta, [Gerard] Pique, [Sergio] Busquets.<\/p>\n
“I am very happy to be able to live together, to be able to learn from them and be able to win together.”<\/p>\n
The playmaker will sign a five-and-half year deal and will have a buyout clause of 400m euros (\u00a3355m).<\/p>\n
It is one of the most expensive transfers of all time, eclipsed only by the \u00a3200m Paris St-Germain paid Barcelona for Neymar last summer, and the \u00a3165.7m Kylian Mbappe will cost PSG at the end of his initial loan spell from Monaco.<\/p>\n
Speaking after the Levante game, Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde said it was “too soon” to determine where Coutinho will play in his side.<\/p>\n
It has been speculated that he could play alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in attack or become 33-year-old midfielder Andres Iniesta’s long-term successor.<\/p>\n
“We can take advantage of his versatility,” Valverde said.<\/p>\n
“He scores and sets up goals, and going forward he can help us a lot as he can play both inside and out wide.”<\/p>\n
Valverde is confident Coutinho can improve a side that is nine points clear at the top of La Liga.<\/p>\n
“I think he can bring a lot to the team,” he added.<\/p>\n
“He is here now, and good luck to him, because if he has luck then it will be good for us.”<\/p>\n
Barcelona midfielder Paulinho plays alongside Coutinho for Brazil and is looking forward to linking up with his compatriot at club level.<\/p>\n
“He is a great player, a magnificent player,” the former Tottenham player said.<\/p>\n
“I am certain he will really help Barca to attain our objectives this season.<\/p>\n
“We hope to see him playing for us as soon as possible.”<\/p>\n
–<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho says his move to Barcelona is a “dream come true” before his official presentation at the Nou Camp on Monday. The 25-year-old is set to join the Spanish giants after a\u00a0\u00a3142m deal was agreed\u00a0with Liverpool on Saturday. He took part in a brief photo session at the Nou Camp after\u00a0Barcelona’s 3-0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":389603,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[142],"tags":[319,2901,15948,9081],"yoast_head":"\n