Well-known sports journalist Romero broke the news on air that FC Barcelona intends to debut Philippe Coutinho in the first round of La Liga matches in order to observe his form and performance, and then decide whether he will stay or go in the future. Therefore, even if he is about to leave the team, it will only be revealed at the last minute of the transfer window.
I have to say, Coutinho in Barcelona's current situation is lamentable. Once upon a time, he was the heart of the Red Army's offense, once known as the "international third man". However, after joining Barcelona, his fate seems to have changed instantly, and he is no longer an indispensable member of the team. Coutinho's situation might have changed if he had switched clubs, so did the change of clubs lead to the exposure of his problems, or did these problems exist in him?
Looking back at Coutinho's career at Liverpool, he spent most of his time as a front man with free kicks, unlimited starts and possession without having to get involved in defense. He simply had to create chances for his teammates at the front of the box and pose a threat to the opposition. It sounds as if this is quite similar to the role he played in Barcelona's tactics - a task undertaken by Lionel Messi. In fact, Coutinho in his Liverpool days was positioned in the same way as Messi, but with the same drawbacks: the need for his teammates to compensate tactically.
Not having the front man back means that the opponent may be allowed to have a numerical advantage when defending as a whole, and even requires the wing strikers to drop back significantly to assist in the defense, in order to alleviate the pressure on the back line. In short, it means that someone needs to pay more to pay for his attacking talents to the fullest in front of the field. Of course, all of this is based on the fact that the front man himself is at a very high level. It's hard to shake Messi when he's in the team, and Coutinho's position has gone from being the moon to the star. Unfortunately, not everyone can be a star. Coutinho's physical quality, technical characteristics do not meet the requirements of the blue-collar players, his positioning in Barcelona has become awkward, and the limitations of his skills are exposed.
There may have been clubs that were a better fit for Coutinho, but his failed Barcelona career was more like the lifting of a veil that made the player's flaws invisible. Coutinho is a valuable player who just needs to be in a certain environment to excel. He may be nowhere near as good as his reputation, but a move to a mid-to-lower-table team to continue to play at the heart of the team may be a better option than staying at Barcelona and wasting his time.
