In the first round of La Liga fierce battle, Messi's absence of Barcelona team with a 4-2 score against the odds to win over Real Sociedad, this achievement also triggered a heated discussion in the media: "no Messi's Barcelona, but a higher level." Although such an evaluation is still too early, but Barcelona has clearly embarked on the journey of renewal.
Crowds were expecting the next person to take over Messi's No.10 kit, with some speculating it would be Fathi and others saying it would be Deperi, however, the new owner of the No.10 has been revealed in Barcelona's offline store, and it is none other than Philippe Coutinho.
According to foreign media reports, Barcelona offline stores have displayed Coutinho's Barcelona No. 10 jersey. According to Mundo Deportivo, Coutinho will stay at Barcelona for the new season, and Laporta has even offered to let him wear the No. 10 jersey that Messi left behind. This decision is certainly an attempt for Barcelona to minimize the impact of Messi's departure.
Coutinho joined Barcelona from Liverpool in 2018 for a transfer fee of €135 million and has made just 89 appearances so far. Last season, due to injury problems, only 14 appearances on behalf of Barcelona in all competitions, contributing 3 goals and 2 assists. His performance is not even as good as Dembele, can be called Barcelona's biggest water goods in the transfer market in recent years.
Philippe Coutinho wore the number 14 shirt last season, but the number has been taken up by other players this season. If Coutinho is serious about wearing the number 10, he will have to prove himself with more goals or he could become the most embarrassing holder of the number 10 jersey in history!
