Transfer News: How Liverpool Could Still Lose Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona, Even After the Window Closes

For most Premier League clubs, the transfer window will close at 11 p.m. on Thursday August 31—but not for Liverpool. 

Jurgen Klopp must wait another 25 hours before learning whether or not he will lose his best attacker, Philippe Coutinho, to Barcelona.

That’s because the Spanish transfer window shuts a day later than in England, at midnight on Friday, leaving La Liga clubs available to sign players from the Premier League through tomorrow.

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FIFA, world football’s governing body, allows individual football associations to decide on their respective deadlines for registering players. The Spanish window opens a day after the English summer transfer window.

Barcelona has had three bids turned down already for Coutinho, who is now on international duty with Brazil. The latest bid for the 25-year-old was reported by the BBC to be £114 million ($146.8 million).

"[Transfer speculation] has affected him and will continue to affect him until the transfer window closes,” Brazil coach Tite said in a press conference on Thursday.

"If he leaves, he will continue to be affected because he'll need time to adapt to his new club. Players are human beings and they respond in different ways.

"I'm not sure how he will respond because it depends on the person.”

Barcelona’s transfer activity this summer has been sparked by the departure of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain for a world-record fee. The Catalans have already bought Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund this summer to replace Neymar for a fee believed to be close to £100 million.

Barcelona’s determination to get Coutinho, coupled with the 25 hours’ difference between the Premier League and La Liga transfer windows, means that Klopp may be in for a nervous Friday as he seeks to hang onto Coutinho ahead of the commencement of Liverpool’s Champions League campaign.