Did You Know? 5 facts about FC Barcelona and ex-Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho

On Wednesday, Liverpool will travel to FC Barcelona in the first-leg of their Champions League semi-final.

The two historic clubs have both won the European Cup five times each and hope to get the chance to add one more to their tally by reaching the final.

It will be the first time Barca midfielder, Phillippe Coutinho, has faced his old club since his £105million blockbuster transfer from Liverpool in the 2018 January window.

Since arriving at the Camp Nou, Coutinho has appeared in all but two of the Catalan club’s La Liga games this season and has clocked up five goals and two assists.

The 26-year-old has also found success in the Champions League, scoring three times in just 10.  appearances in Europe’s premier club competition.

Despite this though, Coutinho has not lived up to the hype he earned during his time at Anfield, where he had established himself as one of the world’s best creative midfielders.

The Brazil international made 201 appearances in all competitions across the six years he spent with the Merseyside club, including 153 in the Premier League.

There have been rumours of a return to England for the playmaker, but at the moment he remains with the La Liga champions and is preparing for the huge semi-final against his old friends.

Here we will share five lesser known facts about the Barcelona’s ex-Liverpool midfielder.

Phil loves Futsal

Philippe Coutinho Correia was born on June 12th, 1992 in Rio de Janeiro. He is the youngest in a family of three sons, and his parents are Esmerelda Coutinho and José Carlos Correia, who works as an architect. He spent his childhood playing futsal on the concrete pitches of Rio with his two older brothers and joined a local academy, where he was spotted by local club; Regatas Vasco da Gama.

Liverpool via Milan

Coutinho was bought by Italian giants Inter Milan in the summer of 2010, and was hailed by chairman Massimo Moratti as ‘the future of Inter’. He made his debut for I Nerazzurri on August 27, 2010 when he came on as a substitute in a 2-0 UEFA Super Cup loss to Atletico Madrid. It wasn’t until May that season that he scored his first goal, in a 3-1 Serie A win over Fiorentina.

Reds get a Bargain

In the 2013 January transfer window, Inter Milan agreed to sell Coutinho to Liverpool for a fee which turned out to be a bargain £8.5million. Reds boss at the time, Brandan Rodgers, gave him his debut that February, as he came on late in a 2-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion. He scored his first goal for the club the very next week in a rampant 5-0 win over Swansea.

Eight-year international

The midfielder made his international debut in October 2010 at the age of 18, in a 3-0 friendly victory over Iran. He has gone on to earn 47 more caps for his national team, including five appearances in the World Cup in 2018. He has scored 13 goals for Brazil – his first coming in a friendly 2-0 win over Mexico in June 2015 – and has contributed with eight assists.

Top of the charts

In his final full season with Liverpool, Coutinho finished as the club’s top scorer in the Premier League for the first time. He scored a career high 13 league goals and topped it off with another seven assists, despite being unable to play for several weeks due to an ankle injury. His performances helped the Reds reach fourth place and qualify for the Champions League.