Liverpool have agreed a deal worth €160 million (£142 million) for the sale of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona.
The Brazilian attacker is flying to Barcelona to complete the move on Saturday night and an announcement will be made this weekend.
He is expected to be at the Nou Camp to watch Barcelona’s game on Sunday, and make his debut for the Catalan side next Wednesday – that injury that saw him miss Liverpool’s last two games seemingly clearing up magically again.
As reported earlier, the fee will be £106 million (€120 million) up front, with a further €40 million in potential add-ons – which are more realistic than the add-ons Barcelona offered in the summer.
The deal will be a record for a British transfer and almost doubles the amount Barcelona spent on Luis Suarez four years ago.
It’s reported that Liverpool attempted to persuade Coutinho to stay, offering a higher wage, but the player was intent on an immediate move this month and not in the summer.
The Brazilian declined their proposed incentives and offer of a higher wage, repeating his intention to move to Camp Nou with immediate effect.
The Liverpool squad flew to Dubai earlier on Saturday for a warm weather training camp, with Coutinho absent, his move to the La Liga leaders will be confirmed later on Saturday evening or on Sunday.
Jurgen Klopp will now turn his attention to replacing Coutinho, with Monaco’s Thomas Lemar the priority and Leicester City‘s Riyad Mahrez also linked.
Coutinho made 201 appearances in six years at Anfield, scoring 54 goals.
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