Coutinho one of the best in the world, says Liverpool team-mate Can

Dom Farrell

Coutinho one of the best in the world, says Liverpool team-mate Can image

Emre Can believes Philippe Coutinho is one of the best players in the world but is adamant the Liverpool dressing room cannot be concerned by the prospect of the Brazil playmaker joining Barcelona.

Coutinho submitted a transfer request to Liverpool last week after the Premier League club's owners, Fenway Sports Group, announced they would not consider any offers for the 25-year-old amid reports of Barca having bids rejected.

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A back problem ruled him out of Liverpool's 2-1 Champions League play-off win at Hoffenheim on Tuesday – a fixture Germany international Can insisted Jurgen Klopp's squad were completely focused upon.

"I think it’s no problem for us because nobody speaks in the team about that," Can told reporters when asked about the Coutinho situation.

“Of course, if Philippe stays with us everybody is happy – in my eyes, he's one of the best players in the world.

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"But if he goes, if he wants to go then everyone will wish him the best and we have to go again."

Coutinho won Liverpool's fans and players' player of the year awards in 2014-15 and 2015-16 and scored 13 times in 31 Premier League appearances for the Reds last season.

Dom Farrell

Dom Farrell Photo

Dom is the senior content producer for Sporting News UK. He previously worked as fan brands editor for Manchester City at Reach Plc. Prior to that, he built more than a decade of experience in the sports journalism industry, primarily for the Stats Perform and Press Association news agencies. Dom has covered major football events on location, including the entirety of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup in Paris and St Petersburg respectively, along with numerous high-profile Premier League, Champions League and England international matches. Cricket and boxing are his other major sporting passions and he has covered the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Gennadiy Golovkin and Vasyl Lomachenko live from ringside.