To sign Coutinho, players must be sold

Barça want to sign Coutinho in January but before that they must sell some players if they don't want to take financial risks. The increase of the wage bill recently has been brutal and the club spends 84 percent of what comes in om salaries and amortizations. It's a situation which is seriously worrying. Spending 150 million euros on a player can only happen with sales. 

In this sense, Pep Segura is looking at the market for André Gomes, Arda Turan, Aleix Vidal and Alcácer. It would be a way to make money on transfers and to cut the wage bill. Talks won't be easy as these players are on big deals and won't accept much less elsewhere. But only like this can Coutinho come in the winter. The Liverpool player's someone who would resolve a lot of Ernesto Valverde's problems. But it would cost more than 100 million euros, plus an elevated salary. 

Last October, Josep Maria Bartomeu said that "the wage bill is worrying and we can't do renewals at any price." However, the reality has been different. A year later, the wage bill hae grown significantly. Sign Coutinho, yes, but not at any price and not before lightening the squad as Valverde has asked.