Barcelona’s financial woes could force Philippe Coutinho transfer decision

Brazil icon Rivaldo admits Barcelona may be forced to offload Philippe Coutinho in order to help balance their books.

Barca are in the midst of a financial crisis and could face bankruptcy if they are unable to pay back a large chunk of their £1.1billion debt soon. Banks are believed to be demanding £236million be paid back by the end of June.

The Catalan giants' recently-released financial statements make for bleak reading, leaving many in no doubt Barca will struggle to sign anyone in the summer transfer window.

But former Camp Nou ace Rivaldo insists they may even need to sell some "important players" to raise funds to pay off their debt.

He told Betfair : " Barcelona were not in good financial health pre-pandemic, but things got nasty in the last year and beyond Lionel Messi's almost inevitable departure, the club may need to sell some more important players to generate income.

"As I mentioned previously, the club's board made a mistake by not selling Lionel Messi while he was still under contract, something Real Madrid did with Cristiano Ronaldo receiving around €100million (£89million) in exchange.

Get the latest news straight into your inbox!

It has been a hectic season so far – so make sure you don't miss a single thing by signing up for the brilliant new Mirror Football newsletter!

All the latest transfer news and big stories will land straight into your inbox. You won't miss out.

To sign up, put your email at the top of this article or follow the instructions on this link.

"It's sad to see such a talented and valuable player leaving Barca for free when the club is going through so many financial problems.

"But looking to potential transfers that might occur, I think Phillipe Coutinho time may have be coming to an end. He has admirers in England and perhaps Barcelona could generate some good income with his sale, allowing them to keep others like Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Griezmann."

Should Barcelona sell Philippe Coutinho this summer? Have your say in the comments.

Rivaldo also warned Barcelona they will struggle to recuperate a sum near the £142million they paid Liverpool for Coutinho in 2018.

He added: "The Brazilian never managed to show his best football in Spain, and since his better moments happened in Premier League I'm sure there will be clubs interested in his services and available to pay considerable amounts, although not quite what Barcelona paid to Liverpool!

"It's clear that the current directors made some errors during this presidency, but COVID-19 played the bigger role in aggravating the situation.

"In the early 2000s Milan also experienced in a big crisis and they are still fighting nowadays to return to European top football, so, I expect that a new president can take things around with the right decisions in terms of signings, sponsorships, and more to prevent the club drowning in a similar situation.

"I don't believe Barcelona will suffer the same fate, but it's important to take immediate measures to prevent it. Barcelona fans simply aren't ready to stop fighting for titles for a decade or two. Out of question."

Sign up to the Mirror Football email here for the latest news and transfer gossip.

Source: Read Full Article