Barcelona: January signing of Philippe Coutinho is paying dividends

Philippe Coutinho has started the season strongly after having the second half of last season to get adjusted and learn from Andres Iniesta.

Barcelona’s recent match against Real Sociedad highlighted how important Philippe Coutinho is to the team even though he is yet to complete a full season with the club. The Catalans were 1-0 down at half-time after a first half in which they had struggled to create clear chances against a well-organised Sociedad side managed by Asier Garitano.

Ernesto Valverde opted to bring on the Brazilian for Nelson Semedo as his first substitution, with Sergi Roberto dropping back into the right-back position for the second half. This sparked some life into the team as they started to penetrate through the opposition defensive shape and maintain possession in the final third. Bringing on Sergio Busquets for Rafinha certainly helped in this regard as well.

Both of Barcelona’s goals came not long after they were on the pitch, and Coutinho contributed directly to that as his wicked shot was pushed wide by Geronimo Rulli for a corner which they subsequently scored the second goal from. He provides a route for the team into the central attacking areas through his ability to receive the ball in tight spaces and link up with the forwards. Rafinha just wasn’t able to have the same kind of influence, so they struggled to break through the opposition lines with Lionel Messi often having to drop deep.

He has certainly adapted to the deep midfield role, although there is still the sense that he is better in a more advanced role due to the freedom it provides. The signing of Coutinho in January surprised many due to the fact that he was ineligible for the Champions League and Barcelona had a sizeable gap over their nearest rivals in the league. However, Barcelona are starting to reap the benefits.