Valverde downplays Coutinho, Umtiti moves

Barcelona Coach Ernesto Valverde has down speculation linking over the futures of Philippe Coutinho and Samuel Umtiti.

The Catalan giants are widely rumoured to be making a club record bid for the Liverpool playmaker while Manchester City are said to have met  the French defender.

“Coutinho does not play for us, so I have nothing to say,” Valverde told a press conference on Wednesday.

“He’s a fantastic player and nobody knows what will happen in the future but I am very happy with my players I have here right now, I like them much more than anyone else.

“It would not be respectful for us to talk about players of other clubs, it is disrespectful to the clubs involved and to the player.

“Umtiti? We do not worry about what others do, but he is clearly a great defender who we want to have for a long time.

“We are happy with him, we think he is happy in Barcelona and want to stay, and it does not matter what a clause is if he does not want to leave.

“Release clauses in Spain work this way and often can create difficulties, we are calm.”

Tags Philippe Coutinho
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