Barcelona transfer news: Paulinho reveals he has regular conversations with Coutinho regarding move
Paulinho has spoken to Coutinho, asking him to not be anxious and to keep his calm over a prospective move.
Barcelona midfielder Paulinho has advised his compatriot Philippe Coutinho that should he decide to come join him in Spain, he will not regret it. The Brazilian was heavily linked with a move to Catalan shores in the summer but a transfer fell through after the Merseyside club refused to sell.
Paulinho – his teammate during international duty – completed a move to Barcelona last summer, and has spoken to Coutinho, asking him to not be anxious and to keep his calm over a prospective move as things will turn out well in the end.
"I advise you to be calm, to leave anxiety aside. I also went through that moment when I was in China. Keep calm and get it right," Paulinho told Mundo Deportivo. "You have to think about the decision you are going to make. What I think is that if you have the opportunity to come, you will not regret it," he added.
Sport claimed that both Liverpool and Barcelona have discussed the economic details of the transfer with hopes that Coutinho could complete his long-awaited move to La Liga in January instead of next summer.
The report added that Barcelona would have to part with a massive €150m (£132.7m, $177.7m) fee to complete the transfer as the Brazilian's agent has conveyed to the Catalans that Fenway Sports Group are unwilling to let him go for anything below that fee when the transfer window reopens next month.
The amount is unlikely to be paid upfront and several instalment plans are being drawn up which could be suitable for both parties, the report said.
The 25-year-old has scored seven goals and assisted six in 13 league appearances so far for the Reds and has been an integral factor in them keeping pace with the top-four.
Meanwhile, Paulinho added that in his conversations with Coutinho, he jokes about how people are already searching for a house where he will be comfortable. The midfielder has stayed in Barcelona before, having served a loan spell at Espanyol in 2012.
"The city already knows of his passage through Espanyol, I talk about the facilities, and the training, the group, the way the group received me that was spectacular," Paulinho added.
"I make jokes that people are already looking for a house for him. I try to give him the basic information, the most important for him and his family, because maybe the time he lived here was not enough to know the city. But he knows that Barcelona is a very good city, that offers everything for him and his family."
