Tottenham have a number of positions they need to strengthen this summer but signing a wide forward isn’t high on their list of priorities. Despite this, South American football expert Tim Vickery hinted on Wednesday that Philippe Coutinho could consider leaving Barcelona to reunite with Mauricio Pochettino at Spurs – his former Espanyol manager.
Vickery said on Sky Sports (h/t Daily Express): “He did very well at Liverpool, but also remember that relationship with Mauricio Pochettino at Espanyol? Is there a little light flashing there?” What Vickery has conveniently ignored is how much Coutinho would cost, howoever. According to Goal, the 26-year-old earns £468k-per-week at the Camp Nou and has struggled for minutes in 2019 – only three starts in last seven Liga games.
Not only would Coutinho smash Tottenham’s wage structure, Spurs would go broke trying to match his asking price. Barcelona paid £142m for the Brazilian international 18 months ago and will want the majority of their money back despite the player’s poor form. Coutinho scored only five Liga goals in 34 games this season, but Barca won’t want to take a financial hit on him.
Tottenham will bolster their squad for the 2019/20 season, but Coutinho would cost too much money to get over the line. That’s not to say he isn’t a talented player, however, contributing 99 goals in 201 games for Liverpool, but Chelsea and Manchester United stand a far better chance of signing him than the Lilywhites.