Barcelona will make no profit on former big-money flop’s imminent move to Qatar – report

FC Barcelona are still enduring the after-effects of Josep Maria Bartomeu’s ill-fated tenure, with the mega-signings of his era leaving a negative imprint to this day.

The acquisition of Philippe Coutinho, in particular, ended up taking a massive toll on the Catalans’ finances.

However, Mateu Alemany’s arrival ensured Barça squeezed out some cash from him as the player was sold to Aston Villa for a €20 million sum, having signed him from Liverpool for a whopping fee of €160 million.

The former sporting director aimed to capitalize on any future gains as well, inserting a 50% sell-on clause.

And there were reports that the Blaugrana would receive an unforeseen gift in the form of the Brazilians’ sale to Qatari side Al Duhail.

However, as per SPORT, Coutinho will not be joining the team on a permanent basis, as it will, in fact, be a loan deal.

Barcelona will not receive any benefits from the operation

Indeed, owing to the deal involving a loan spell, the sell-on clause will not be activated, and Barcelona will gain no indirect benefit, despite rumors during the summer transfer window that it would materialize.

Fabrizio Romano claims that an agreement between Aston Villa and Al Duhail is soon to be finalized, as the Gulf team will take ownership of Coutinho’s salary.

Around ten days ago, Coutinho decided to accept the Qatari offer over Besiktas and Real Betis, who had also made bids for his services.

Coutinho’s difficult time at Barcelona

Barcelona paid a club-record fee to acquire Coutinho from Liverpool in January 2018, but the transaction was a complete failure.

After his struggles in Catalonia, he was sent out to Bayern and eventually sold to Aston Villa for a meager sum after also spending a loan spell at the English club.

Now, it seems Coutinho is looking to call it quits on his time in Europe as a move to Al Duhail is set to transpire.

Unfortunately for the Catalans, with the deal being a loan transaction, they will receive no financial gain.