Barcelona confident of Philippe Coutinho deal

Spanish giants Barcelona are reportedly confident of sealing a deal for Liverpool playmaker Philippe Coutinho despite Jurgen Klopp's stance of not selling the Brazil international.

The Catalan giants have already had a £72m bid turned down for the Reds midfielder, but their latest offer of around £90m is likely to be sufficient to do business.

According to The Sun, Ernesto Valverde's feel they have got the deal in their bag with the Reds' hierarchy likely to permit Coutinho's sale against the manager's wishes.

A separate report from Metro suggests that Coutinho is keen to link up with Barcelona, and he has verbally agreed to personal terms with the Camp Nou outfit.

Coutinho missed Liverpool's 2-1 friendly win over Athletic Bilbao over the weekend, but Klopp has suggested that the attacker was struggling from a back problem.

With the transfer window closing in less than a month's time, losing Coutinho would leave a huge void to fill in the Reds lineup with Adam Lallana already out for three months with a thigh problem.

Valverde has the full £198m gained from Neymar's sale to spend on new signings, and Coutinho looks the most likely to take up his compatriot's position.