Tottenham were reportedly prepared to push ahead with a transfer deal for Philippe Coutinho before being blocked by their manager at the time, Mauricio Pochettino.
The Daily Mirror have explained why Coutinho’s deal with Spurs ended up falling through last summer, and it seems like there was no issue with the club, but with Pochettino himself.
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The report quotes the Barcelona misfit’s agent Kia Joorabchian as denying claims that the move falling through was anything to do with Tottenham chief Daniel Levy or the money that was on offer.
“Philippe Coutinho has no personal issue with Daniel Levy and claims otherwise are totally false. The deal did not collapse due to financial reasons,” he told the Daily Mirror.
Tottenham fans may be frustrated to hear that Pochettino rejected such a big name, though in fairness that decision looks a pretty good one after another disappointing season from Coutinho.
Despite being one of the best players in the world during his time at Liverpool, the 27-year-old has gone rapidly downhill at Barcelona and at current loan club Bayern Munich.
It remains to be seen if the Brazil international can get back to his best, so Spurs may well have dodged a pretty expensive bullet there thanks to Pochettino’s reservations over the player.