Barcelona AND Liverpool dealt blow with Philippe Coutinho to undergo knee surgery

Barcelona have been dealt a huge blow after confirming that Philippe Coutinho will undergo knee surgery which is likely to keep him sidelined long term.

Coutinho was a second half substitute in Barca’s 1-1 draw at home to Eibar on Tuesday, only to depart in stoppage time after picking up a knee injury.

Barcelona released a statement on their website confirming that the playmaker will undergo the treatment in the next few days but did not give a time frame on how long he would be out for.

The statement read: ‘The tests carried out on the first team player Philippe Coutinho have shown that the midfielder has an injury to the lateral meniscus in his left knee.

‘Treatment will necessitate arthroscopic surgery which will take place in the coming days.’

The injury is also bad news for Liverpool who could now miss out on an expected £18million this season as a result of their £130million deal to sell the Brazilian to the Nou Camp in 2018.

Part of the transfer according to El Periodico, was that should Coutinho play 100 competitive games for Barcelona, the Spanish side would have to pay the Premier League champions £18m.

Coutinho was set to reach that mark during this campaign, with his substitute appearance on Monday being his 90th overall – meaning 10 more appearances in any competition this season would activate the clause.

The playmaker has struggled to make an impact at the Spanish side since joining nearly three years ago and spent last season on loan at Bayern Munich. 

Although Ronald Koeman has given him a second chance to revive his career at the Nou Camp after arriving as manager in the summer, Coutinho still struggles to produce his best displays he produced in a Liverpool shirt during his five years at Anfield. 

More to follow…