Brazil legend Rivaldo has backed Philippe Coutinho to get back to his best if he seals a transfer to Chelsea.
Coutinho showed himself to be a world class talent during his last spell in the Premier League with Liverpool, but he’s badly struggled since then.
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Having failed to get going at Barcelona, Coutinho has spent this season on loan at Bayern Munich, and he’s not done a great deal to impress there either.
The 27-year-old has been strongly linked with Chelsea by Sport, and Rivaldo thinks he still has it in him to revive his career, and that the move to Stamford Bridge could be just what he needs to get back to his best.
“Looking at Coutinho’s last few years we can say that he didn’t achieved what was expected of him, but he is still has time to recover his best football and with his confidence back he could easily become the same player he was at Liverpool,” Rivaldo told Betfair, as quoted by the Daily Mirror.
“I consider this to be just a not-so-good spell for him, but we can’t say that he is playing poorly because it would be a lie, things are simply not running as well as many would expect when he left Liverpool to sign for Barcelona.
“He is still a regular in the Brazilian national team and just hasn’t been lucky enough at Barcelona or Bayern, but perhaps that could change with a new club and I believe this would be a nice opportunity for him to get back to his best football at Chelsea.”
Chelsea fans will hope Rivaldo is right, with the Blues in need of a quality attacking midfield player like Coutinho at the moment.
The Brazil international might look a risky purchase, but if he shows his Liverpool form again with a return to England, he could be just what CFC need to replace Eden Hazard, who has been missed since his move to Real Madrid last summer.