With rumours of a return of one of their former players beginning to gather pace, former Liverpool striker, John Aldridge, has advised his former club to steer well clear.
Express report that although Bayer Leverkusen star Kai Havertz is Jurgen Klopp’s top summer target, the German tactician isn’t averse to the idea of a return for Philippe Coutinho.
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The Brazilian had a torrid time at Barcelona before being sent out on loan to Bayern Munich, and it isn’t clear if the Bundesliga side will take up their option on the player at the end of the season.
Regardless, Aldridge has warned against the idea of bringing him back to Anfield as it could block the pathway of exciting youngster Curtis Jones into the first-team.
Writing in the Liverpool Echo, Aldridge notes: “Perhaps the biggest reason though why I’m not bothered about Liverpool trying to bring players like Coutinho back is the brilliant crop of young players we’ve got coming through at the moment […]
“It was fantastic to see a young Scouser like Curtis Jones become the youngest captain in Liverpool’s history and he really rose to the occasion […] What kind of message would it send to him if we brought Coutinho back now in front of him just as he’s starting to see a real pathway into the team?”
There’s little doubt that the Brazilian played some of his best football whilst on Merseyside, and is one of very few players that it could be legitimately said would improve the quality of a fantastic Liverpool side.
But is ‘going back’ ever the right thing to do?