Barcelona prepare to offer Liverpool an exchange deal for Coutinho

In an attempt to negotiate Liverpool’s asking price for star man Philippe Coutinho, Barcelona may offer midfielder Rafinha in exchange, according to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo.

The Reds are desperate to keep hold of their playmaker but the 25-year-old has made his desire to move to Camp Nou clear to manager Jurgen Klopp, and is thought that a deal may yet be struck.

The blaugrana have already had a bid rejected for the former Inter man, and are some way off of Liverpool’s apparent £100m asking price.

However, in an attempt to sweeten the deal the La Liga giants are willing to see Rafinha move in the opposite direction, with the Premier League outfit one of many to have been monitoring the Barca man’s situation closely.

The product of Barcelona’s La Masia academy has been identified as a player that the club may sell to make funds available to bring in other targets having started just 14 of 20 league appearances last season.

He scored 6 goals in said outings, while of those to make more than five La Liga appearances last season, only club mate Samuel Umtiti boasted a better pass accuracy (92.6%).

Rafinha would likely not be seen as a direct replacement in the Liverpool XI for Coutinho but his versatility would be a real asset as he aims to link up with the Reds star at next summer’s World Cup in Russia.