Man Utd have three reasons not to make 'pointless' Philippe Coutinho transfer this summer - 7M sport

Man Utd have three reasons not to make 'pointless' Philippe Coutinho transfer this summer

Dimitar Berbatov has explained why Manchester United should not sign Philippe Coutinho.


Posted Saturday, May 30, 2020 by Express.co.uk

Dimitar Berbatov feels it would be "pointless" if his former side Manchester United tried to sign Barcelona midfielder Philippe Coutinho at the end of the season.

Coutinho has struggled for form since moving to the Nou Camp from Liverpool in January 2018.

The Brazilian has been shipped out on loan to Bayern Munich for this season but his switch will not be made permanent.

Barcelona will look for somebody to take the 27-year-old off their hands in the next transfer window.

And a move to the Premier League has been heavily mooted because it is where Coutinho has enjoyed the best spell of his career.

But United, who are in the market for a creative midfielder, have been urged against signing the playmaker by Berbatov.

Man Utd have three reasons not to make 'pointless' Philippe Coutinho transfer this summer
Philippe Coutinho is expected to leave Barcelona this summer

The Bulgarian reckons Coutinho would not be an improvement on the Red Devils' current midfield trio of Scott McTominay, Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes.

"Other people will see him linked with a move to United and they will point out his connections with Liverpool and how he would never be forgiven if he switched to Old Trafford," Berbatov told Betfair.

"But honestly, United don't need him right now.

"Bruno Fernandes is a very similar player; he really hit the ground running and looks to be a very promising signing so I don't think there would be any point in United signing him.

"Pogba is coming back, Fernandes is there, McTominay is producing great football as well, they have enough quality there so signing Coutinho would be pointless."

A host of other British sides have been linked with a summer move for Coutinho.

"There have been a lot of Premier League clubs linked with him, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle and even Manchester United, but sometimes the obvious choice isn't always the correct one," Berbatov added.

"Everyone thought he would do great when he moved to Barcelona but it didn't work out, sometimes you need to step back to go forwards.

"He will go to a good team there is no question about that, but he needs the trust of a manager to believe in him and make him the main man so that he can play calm and be free to do what he does."

United are already looking at other midfield targets as they closely monitor Aston Villa's Jack Grealish and Birmingham's 16-year-old star Jude Bellingham.



Attention: Third parties may advertise their products and/or services on our website.7M does not warrant the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of their contents.
Your dealings with such third parties are solely between you and such third parties and we shall not be liable in any way for any loss or damage of any sort incurred by you.