TOP 5 Barca: Liverpool deny Coutinho transfer, Messi, Paulinho, Valverde, Dembele

Looking for the latest Barcelona news? You have come to the right place! Compiled by Francesc Tomas, host of The Barcelona Podcast, here are the Top 5 Barca stories coming out of the Camp Nou today:

Liverpool will demand astronomical fee from Barcelona to sell Philippe Coutinho after Nike website blunder | Telegraph

Liverpool will demand an astronomical fee for Philippe Coutinho before they consider the sale of the Brazilian to Barcelona after the Spanish side’s shirt manufacturers were guilty of an extraordinary marketing blunder.

Barcelona’s presumption they will sign the playmaker in this transfer window was taken to extreme levels when Nike – who not only provide the club’s kits but have their own sponsorship deal with Coutinho – announced his imminent arrival at the Nou Camp. More here.

How Lionel Messi is preparing for his challenges in 2018 | Sport

Messi will fight to the end for the dream which has become an obsession after defeat in the final in 2014, and that will mean good things for Barcelona. He wil turn 31 next year and wants to win everything possible with Barcelona before heading to Russia.

“I’m not thinking about the future, I’m thinking about the short term,” said Messi, referring to his commitments with Barcelona in an interview with TYC Sports a month ago.

Barcelona Mid-Season Review | The Barcelona Podcast

Francesc and Dan focus on analysing the 2017/18 season so far, breaking down their most (and least!) favourite moments since Valverde’s arrival in the summer. Francesc is then joined by Jordi Getman and Galo Ortiz from Penya FC Barcelona NYC to discuss their incredible work to promote Barca’s greatness and vision in New York City. Your hosts close the show with their traditional Ronda of Quick-Fire Listener Questions.

If you haven’t yet, subscribe NOW via iTunes or wherever else you get your podcast to make sure you never miss another episode.

Paulinho’s market value triples since Barcelona transfer | Marca

Despite his fine displays in the Chinese Super League, many expected that Paulinho would struggle to adapt to the increase in quality that the Spanish top flight possesses. At 40 million euros, the transfer fee was another cause for scepticism; however his displays on the pitch have made this figure seem fair by January.

Upon his arrival in Spain, the former Corinthians star had a market value of 15 million euros; this meant that the Spanish giants had paid over double what his value was in order to secure his signature. More here.

Ten standout statements from Ernesto Valverde’s interview | FC Barcelona

Ernesto Valverde
spoke to FC Barcelona’s official media to give an exclusive review of his time in charge to date. The Barça coach talked about everything from his arrival at the club to his thoughts on individual players, in a look back over the first half of the season. We’ve picked out ten choice cuts from the interview:

“At the start you have to adapt to the team and to the players, but you gradually solve these issues. There is a style that you have to put in place permanently, and the players here are very competitive and winners. This is a team very aware of what they need to do. Any Barça player is a different player. Dembélé’s profile was different to anything we had. He is able to play in various positions and is very fast. We have a big squad, we’ve made good replacements up to now, and now he’s coming back. It’s great news.” More here.

Recalibrating the balance: How will Barcelona set up with Ousmane Dembélé? | JenFCB

As the new year begins, a lot of people in the Barcelona fanbase are guilty of piling unfair expectations on Ousmane Dembele’s shoulders. As his return to the fields edges closer, I will be the first to admit that I belong to that category. His signing in the summer was greeted with a lot of optimism, as grueling and tiring as the process of the transfer may have been. And there’s plenty of talent there to warrant that optimism; plenty of potential to justify the hopes and dreams piled on him. Those expectations have persisted through the difficult hamstring injury that he sustained early on.

And while many may think that the team has lacked some offensive sparkle this season, many also believe that the Frenchman will bring that back once he returns. More here.

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The Barcelona Podcast is brought to you by Francesc Tomas (as seen in ESPN, The Guardian) and Dan Hilton (Barcablog). Listen in for the hottest breaking stories from the Camp Nou!