Phillipe Coutinho: Brazilian nightmare a lesson on how the grass isn’t always greener on the other side

“Stay here and they will end up building a statue in your honour,” Jürgen Klopp told Philippe Coutinho back in May 2017.

“Go somewhere else, to Barcelona, to Bayern Munich, to Real Madrid, and you will be just another player. Here you can be something more.”

As it transpired, despite an initially blossoming first half season at Camp noun, Coutinho’s dream move to FC Barcelona has
gradually turned into a nightmare, and Klopp’s warning has been proven true.

Without a clearly defined role in the team,
the Brazilian fell out of favour with Ernesto Valverde last season and, following the £107m arrival of Antoine Griezmann from Atlético Madrid this summer, he is heading somewhere else. FC Bayern Munich On loan.

The Bundesliga champions have taken him to the checkout, trying him before potentially buying him next summer.

This was a player who was adored at Anfield and was compared to the likes of Andres ineista and Xavi. To find himself in a situation where Barcelona are in urgent need to get rid of him and no one appears all that
desperate to take him, must feel chastening.

It’s quite the fall from grace to grass.

And despite the clamour of some Anfield faithful interested in a Coutinho Return, there was absolutely no suggestion jurgen klopp would bring in back as Liverpool have evolved into a “World Class” team since his departure.

In Mohammed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, Liverpool posses the best front three in Europe’s elite competition. And after winning the champions league in June, they have been able to achieve their dreams at Liverpool.

As Liverpool are now dinning at the very top of European football once more, the reasons for the Reds’ star players to seek a new challenge no longer exists.

But in Coutinho, Klopp has a prime example to point towards that shows exactly why
the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

It serves as a powerful lesson of how dream moves to the Spanish giants don’t necessarily reap the anticipated rewards.