Report: FC Barcelona’s Philippe Coutinho “prefers” not to move to Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich’s rumored interest in FC Barcelona’s Philippe Coutinho might have hit a snag. Per a report from Sky Sports, Coutinho does not want to make the move to Germany.

Coutinho is not going to make leaving Barca easy for the club. The 27-year-old former Liverpool man already rejected a move back to England when Tottenham Hotspur had interest prior to the Premier League transfer deadline. Now, it seems, Germany is yet another destination that Coutinho would spurn:

Sky Sports News has been told Coutinho’s preference is not to move to Germany. The 27-year-old also rejected a loan move to Tottenham prior to Transfer Deadline Day in the U.K.

If Barcelona is unable to use Coutinho in a deal to bring Neymar back to the club from Paris Saint-Germain, it would prefer to sell him off rather than keep the Brazil international or loan him out:

Barcelona have previously placed an £80m price tag on the Brazilian and would prefer to see Coutinho leave Camp Nou on a permanent transfer before the window shuts for European clubs on September 2nd.

Initial reports indicated that Bayer Munich would work with FC Barcelona to try and use the same plan that helped procure James Rodriguez from Real Madrid in 2017. While Barca might be willing to play ball, it seems as if Coutinho would reject a move to Die Roten — at least as of today:

Sky Sports News understands Bayern Munich would be looking to agree a two-year loan arrangement with Barcelona, similar to the deal they secured for Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez in 2017.