Coutinho Commits To Paying £11.5M Of Transfer Fee To Barcelona

Liverpool will try to "bring forward a move for Naby Keïta as Philippe Coutinho's replacement" after it emerged that the Brazilian agreed to "pay a chunk" of his £142M ($192.6M) transfer to Barcelona "out of his own pocket," according to Paul Joyce of the LONDON TIMES. Coutinho reportedly committed to paying £11.5M ($15.6M) of the fee "simply to ensure there were no late hitches with the deal." Coutinho has paid about £9M ($12.2M) and "will pay the remainder in the future," according to "well-placed" sources. The "controversy surrounding the leaked Nike advert" offering Barcelona shirts bearing Coutinho's name is understood to have resulted in a "change of the terms of what is a record deal involving a British club." Liverpool Manager Jürgen Klopp wants to accelerate Keïta's £57M ($77.3M) move from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig, "which is scheduled for July 1 as it stands" (LONDON TIMES, 1/8).