Everton remain ‘unlikely’ to swoop for former Liverpool superstar Philippe Coutinho after being offered the opportunity to sign the attacking midfielder this summer, according to the Echo.
The Echo report that the Toffees were presented with the chance to sign the 29-year-old earlier in the transfer window as Barcelona looked to offload out-of-favour stars to cut their wage bill.
Barcelona have largely failed in their efforts to move on unwanted players like Coutinho, which isn’t surprising considering the hefty wages that they’re all reportedly sitting on, which has ultimately left them unable to re-sign all-time great and Camp Nou icon Lionel Messi.
Coutinho has been unable to make his mark with the La Liga powerhouses after leaving Everton’s rivals Liverpool in a mammoth £142m deal, per BBC Sport, in January 2018.
The Echo report that whilst Everton have not completely ruled out a swoop for Coutinho, the Brazil international is not someone that the club are currently pursuing.
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The attacker has been plagued by injury troubles during his time with Barcelona, which have made it impossible for the Brazilian to show the kind of consistency that made him a superstar at Liverpool.
It looked as though Coutinho might’ve turned a corner for Barcelona last season, with two goals and two assists in his first six appearances of the season, but another injury cropped up and derailed the ace.
Rafa Benitez has worked with Coutinho in the past, the Spaniard was manager of Inter Milan when the talent officially arrived at the club and handed him his debut.