As Philippe Coutinho’s time in Catalonia nears a gloomy end, Barcelona have shortlisted a “number 7” to replace him in the next season.
After wearing the number 14 in his initial six months at the club, Barcelona winger Philippe Coutinho inherited the prestigious number 7 at the start of 2018/19. However, the Brazil international has not donned one of the most highly regarded jersey numbers in a great way and it is something that is clearly not acceptable.
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Next season, Philippe Coutinho will not only be axed of his number 7 jersey, but potentially also his role at Barcelona. The former Liverpool winger has been linked with a sensational return to the Anfield while there are rumoured offers from Manchester United as well as Paris Saint-Germain and both teams consider him to be a worthy player.
The Catalans’ investment of 142 million euros has gone down the drain for Philippe Coutinho and they are looking to get as much return as possible within just 18 months of his purchase. In this grind, they have labelled him with a transfer tag of 100 million euros and will not think twice if there is an offer for the forward in that price region.
According to Diario GOL, Barcelona have already shortlisted their next number 7 in Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann. The World Cup winner has said that he will consider offers during the summer due to the lack of winning opportunities in the Wanda Metropolitano. Also, the departure of Diego Godin and probably outgoings of others is a driving force.
Antoine Griezmann’s release clause was earlier estimated to be in the region of 200 million euros, but it later got rectified that only 120 million euros would be paid by any club wishing to sign him. The number 7 which Griezmann wears at Atletico Madrid and France is already waiting at the Camp Nou for him as the signing probably would go through this year.
Who else do you think might be a worth number 7 apart from Antoine Griezmann?