Barcelona general manager Pep Segura has revealed the Spanish giants are close to completing transfers for Liverpool ace Philippe Coutinho and Borussia Dortmund sensation Ousmane Dembele.
Ernesto Valverde’s side are desperate to add to their offensive options in the wake of Neymar’s £193m departure to Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month and have identified Coutinho and Dembele as their top transfer targets.
Barcelona will need to spend in excess of £100m on both targets but Segura has revealed the club are on the verge of landing both players, which would cap a remarkable summer of change at the Camp Nou.
“We’re close to Coutinho and Dembele,” he said on Catalan television station TV3, via The Daily Telegraph. “We are discussing their deals but do not know when it will be done.” Asked if he expected them to sign, he added: “Yes, we expect it.”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is adamant that Coutinho will not be sold this summer, but there are growing reports of unrest between player and manager, even to the degree that Coutinho will reportedly refuse to play.
Dembele, meanwhile, has been suspended indefinitely by Dortmund after failing to turn up to training last week and the German side are set to make a huge profit on the 20-year-old they only signed for €12m (£10.9m) 12 months ago.
Coutinho is just coming off his best ever season as a professional after breaking double figures for league goals for the first time (13). Not only that, but only three players won the WhoScored Man of the Match award more times in the Premier League last term than the Liverpool No.10 (8).
