Liverpool want to keep Philippe Coutinho away from Barcelona
Liverpool have already rejected a £72million bid from Barcelona for star man Coutinho.
The Reds are determined not to sell but Barca are reportedly continuing their pursuit of the player.
Reports in Spain yesterday claimed Coutinho would even be willing to take a pay cut to join Barca.
But Bartomeu remained tight-lipped when asked about Barca’s chase for the Brazilian.
"He's a Liverpool player and I have a lot of respect for Liverpool,” Bartomeu said.
“What we do in the summer is to be very discreet about everything.
“So we can not confirm or deny anything.
"There will be more players (coming in), one in the middle, that’s for sure."
Barca have courted Coutinho as well as Paris Saint-Germain’s Marco Verratti this summer.
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Liverpool have already snubbed Barcelona's £72m bid for Philippe Coutinho
Philippe Coutinho scores a screamer against Leicester
PSG are determined to block any move for Verratti and have gone on the offensive, with some reports in the Catalan press suggesting their interest in signing Neymar is merely a retaliation for Barca’s attempts to unstable Verratti.
As for Liverpool, while they have signed Mohamed Salah from Roma this season, a failed move for RB Leipzig’s Naby Keita means they would likely have to re-enter the transfer marker if Coutinho was sold.
West Ham’s Manuel Lanzini has been mooted as a viable replacement for Coutinho - but reports claim the Hammers will not do business with the Anfield side.
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