7 - Philippe Coutinho - V1

[DonAK]

Messi is actually the elephant in the room

-----------Busi-Vidal
Dembele-Coutinho-????
------------Suarez

if you replace the ???? with a pacey winger on the left, that lineup has balance and everything you need with everyone playing in their best position but you cant bench or get rid of the GOAT.. so were in some kind of limbo right now. Messi cant play on the wing in that type of formation as he and Coutinho will end up on top of eachother.. i also don't think he has the stamina anymore to play there either.

if you replace Suarez in that formation with Icardi for example (or a pure #9 with some height), Busi for Frankie DJ it gets even better for the future

also note to cules before you jump on me; im not saying we should sell or bench Messi but i do wonder sometimes what we'd lineup like in a post-Messi world

Arthur
Vidal - Coutinho

Messi - Suarez - Dembele

 

[KingLeo10]

-----busquets---+one

----dembele----Messi---coutinho

------------saurez

Solves all the problems,
Keeps Messi in the middle from the start so he doesn't unbalance the system.

Dembele starts on his best wing

Coutinho plays as an attacking left midfielder, Not a midfielder not an attacker, but that half space in between where he flourishies.

Biggest issue would be who plays beside busquets, and dembele & coutinho learning to drop back effectively.

That would work with a younger suarez, messi, or busquets but as it stands, we better hope the CB pair is nesta and maldini if the opponent counters through the middle.

 

[jamrock]

That would work with a younger suarez, messi, or busquets but as it stands, we better hope the CB pair is nesta and maldini if the opponent counters through the middle.

Messi & saurez already don't offer much in the defensive phase, thats why we will need coutinho & dembele to effectively track back & offer cover.

Busquets is the least of our problems, he will do his job like he always does, the question is who to start with him. The answer is clear though.

 

[Messigician]

-----busquets---+one

----dembele----Messi---coutinho

------------saurez

Solves all the problems,
Keeps Messi in the middle from the start so he doesn't unbalance the system.

Dembele starts on his best wing

Coutinho plays as an attacking left midfielder, Not a midfielder not an attacker, but that half space in between where he flourishies.

Biggest issue would be who plays beside busquets, and dembele & coutinho learning to drop back effectively.

Not even in FIFA would i try this formation. You would need Vieira besdies Busquets, Maldini,Nesta, Puyol, Zanetti as the backline to make it work.

 

[henias]

3-4-3 - Coutinho 10, Messi False 9

I would like to see Coutinho as a number 10 CAM role, instead of a CM or LW. I think would suit him the best as he can roam in those half spaces, and pick out passes. When Messi drops deep, he can venture forward. A very versatile role for him

I would definitely try the 343. Posted this in the formation thread.

 

[Porque]

Coutinho got injured and is now out of form and a bit behind the pace. Lets not overthink this. The guy is world class and already showed it last season.

It is up to Valverde now to get him back in the team and rotate everyone (lol).

Dembele is showing he needs to be in the 11, Suarez and Messi go without saying. Then in midfield Vidal is staking his claim and Arthur is still to come back.

Nice problems for Valverde. Coutinho will be back with a world class game when hes 100% and all will be forgotten.

 

[FinBarcelonafan]

Cout looked great in WC. The guy has quality but seems a bit lost now. I blame Valverde not knowing how to use him.

 

[Jombi]

He's far more like Cesc than Iniesta. Thats pretty clear. The question is why he is so bad right now. He has played left forward more than any other position in his whole career. There's no point in attacking Valverde for that. He is not "out of position", he is more used to that than playing as a midfielder, and especially as a Barca midfielder. We cant afford to try to fit him into our midfield for years like we did with Cesc. We need balance and composure in midfield and he's at his best when he plays close to the goal. Thats not what Barca midfielders do. He's a 160m "instant impact" superstar. He needs to succeed here.

 

[Lfc fan]

I would take him back to Liverpool

 

[Leo_Messi]

This transfer would make little sense but for this very reason I expect our useless board to buy him.

We don't need another offensive player but players in the mould of Verratti, Weigl, Pjanic etc. Midfielders who can dictate the play and help keep possession. Players that will strengthen the midfield's defensive contribution when not in possession as well.

Bernardo Silva would be a much better addition should we pursue a player with similar characteristics to Coutinho. He would be cheaper and 2 years younger too.

I cannot see him replace Iniesta and he would add little that we don't have already. Don't get me wrong, Coutinho is a very good player that has much room for improvement but he would not be the ideal fit as things are currently. Unless we buy Verratti as well which is incredibly unlikely.

I wrote this post above the 12th May 2017 (my 31st most recent post on this forum - just noticed this thread and remembered what I once wrote here and elsewhere) and here over 1.5 years after, I don't think that I have been proven wrong (unfortunately), at least for the time being.

People who insist or claim that Coutinho is a good fit in our 4-3-3 (or what is left of it) or other formations with our current squad (attackers and midfielders) are seeing something that I am not seeing.

The transfer fee was absurd as it was on its own (to put it mildly) but Coutinho's performances have by no means been better let alone more stable than those of Dembélé yet the latter is crucified in the local media and among a large section of the fanbase while Coutinho's many mediocre and inconsistent performances (considering his price tag, expectations, more or less being the finished article unlike Dembélé) are brushed under the carpet in comparison.

I am not saying that he is doomed to failure but I am afraid that the situation is going to resemble the trajectory of Fábregas. A player that I was likewise never the biggest fan of to put it mildly unlike Coutinho who I like as a player. The problem is that he most likely is at the wrong club at the wrong time.

Messi and Suárez are both guaranteed a starting spot regardless of the system or formation used. Likewise Busquets and Rakitic. Thus Coutinho's main competitors for playing time are Dembélé and Arthur. Our two most promising (in both the attacking and midfield department) and our two best performing (by far) youngsters this season. It's really unfortunate.

A midfield trio consisting of Arthur, Busquets and Coutinho (for instance) or Rakitic, Busquets and Coutinho or Vidal, Arthur and Coutinho etc. might sound good on paper but neither option is optimal given that Coutinho is not a real midfielder. Likewise using Coutinho on the left in a 4-3-3 is problematic for obvious reasons (a criminal lack of pace, too predictable, zero runs in between the lines etc.).

Once again the board shows a lack of long-term planning and a lack of a real sporting project.

300 million euros (!) was spent on both Coutinho and Dembélé combined. That's a huge sum (regardless of the Neymar sale) and one should rightfully expect big things from such transfers. Dembélé (in my eyes that is) development is going in the right direction as well as impact (in particular this season) and I have few worries in this regard. In Coutinho's case the story is different. For now that is.

I have no idea how the useless board came to the conclusion that Coutinho would be an ideal replacement and successor of Iniesta as Mundo Deportivo and Sport propagandized for months pre-summer 2017 until his purchase this January.

 

[Givenchy]

I wrote this post above the 12th May 2017 (my 31st most recent post on this forum - just noticed this thread and remembered what I once wrote here and elsewhere) and here over 1.5 years after, I don't think that I have been proven wrong (unfortunately), at least for the time being.

People who insist or claim that Coutinho is a good fit in our 4-3-3 (or what is left of it) or other formations with our current squad (attackers and midfielders) are seeing something that I am not seeing.

The transfer fee was absurd as it was on its own (to put it mildly) but Coutinho's performances have by no means been better let alone more stable than those of Dembélé yet the latter is crucified in the local media and among a large section of the fanbase while Coutinho's many mediocre and inconsistent performances (considering his price tag, expectations, more or less being the finished article unlike Dembélé) are brushed under the carpet in comparison.

I am not saying that he is doomed to failure but I am afraid that the situation is going to resemble the trajectory of Fábregas. A player that I was likewise never the biggest fan of to put it mildly unlike Coutinho who I like as a player. The problem is that he most likely is at the wrong club at the wrong time.

Messi and Suárez are both guaranteed a starting spot regardless of the system or formation used. Likewise Busquets and Rakitic. Thus Coutinho's main competitors for playing time are Dembélé and Arthur. Our two most promising (in both the attacking and midfield department) and our two best performing (by far) youngsters this season. It's really unfortunate.

A midfield trio consisting of Arthur, Busquets and Coutinho (for instance) or Rakitic, Busquets and Coutinho or Vidal, Arthur and Coutinho etc. might sound good on paper but neither option is optimal given that Coutinho is not a real midfielder. Likewise using Coutinho on the left in a 4-3-3 is problematic for obvious reasons (a criminal lack of pace, too predictable, zero runs in between the lines etc.).

Once again the board shows a lack of long-term planning and a lack of a real sporting project.

300 million euros (!) was spent on both Coutinho and Dembélé combined. That's a huge sum (regardless of the Neymar sale) and one should rightfully expect big things from such transfers. Dembélé (in my eyes that is) development is going in the right direction as well as impact (in particular this season) and I have few worries in this regard. In Coutinho's case the story is different. For now that is.

I have no idea how the useless board came to the conclusion that Coutinho would be an ideal replacement and successor of Iniesta as Mundo Deportivo and Sport propagandized for months pre-summer 2017 until his purchase this January.

great post and totally agreed... this could end up Cesc 2.0. our board are more dangerous the more money they have.. i really wouldn't put it past them trying to buy Pogba or re-sign Neymar at the expence of positions in need

 

[jamrock]

I said from day 1 and repeat it multiple times that he can't play for us in midfield, but I think he can do a great job on the left, he did it in the prem. I don't see why I can't do it here.

But with us sticking to a 4-3-3 and Messi & saurez certain of a starting spot, we basically bought 300m worth of talent to fight over 1 spot, at least for the short to medium term. Which isn't the best use of our resources.

 

[Messigician]

In theory

Suarez Messi
Coutinho Vidal Busquets Dembele
Alba Umtiti Lenglet Semedo
Ter Stegen

Works quite well no?

 

[FCBfan22]

In theory

Suarez Messi
Coutinho Vidal Busquets Dembele
Alba Umtiti Lenglet Semedo
Ter Stegen

Works quite well no?

That's how we played at the end of the last season, including the Girona trashing. A 4-3-3 4-4-2 hybrid.

 

[jamrock]

A 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2,4-4-1-1.

Which is just variations of the same shape all work, but will Valverde play it, unlikely.