Barcelona are 'waiting' for Newcastle United to make an approach for Philippe Coutinho, according to Spanish newspaper Sport (via Sport Witness).

The lowdown

The La Liga giants paid £142m to sign the Brazilian from Liverpool back in 2018 in one of the biggest-ever transfers (via BBC Sport) but the move hasn't worked for the 29-year-old, who admitted recently that he had 'suffered' at Camp Nou.

Since the start of his full season at the club, he's registered only 12 goal involvements in La Liga. That's partly down to the fact Barcelona sent him on loan to Bayern Munich for the 2019/20 season.

Coutinho's Transfermarkt value has plummeted to £18m but his wages are costing the Catalan club €20m (£17m) per season, which equates to a seismic weekly top-up of £380,000.

The latest

According to Sport (via Sport Witness), Barcelona know that Coutinho's departure could pave the way for signings, and all eyes are on Newcastle, with the Catalan giants aware of the Magpies' intention to splash the cash in January and of the player's positive reputation in England.

There has been no approach just yet, but it's anticipated that an agreement will be reached if Newcastle 'step forward'.

The verdict

The report alluded to Coutinho's 'great image' on English shores, and that stems from his dazzling displays for Liverpool, whose manager Jurgen Klopp even used the word 'genius' to describe him back in 2016.

It seems doubtful now that he will be able to recover those levels, especially given the evident damage to his confidence. However, if Newcastle's PIF ownership truly believe they can revitalise Coutinho, who contributed to 99 goals in 201 games for Liverpool, then it seems as if they have willing negotiating partners in Barcelona. In turn, that could help a move to be completed with relative ease.

In other news, Newcastle also want this goalkeeper in January