Barcelona would have to pay an additional 100million euros (£89million) in addition to any transfer fee if they were to purchase a Liverpool player before 2020, according to Times journalist Paul Joyce.
The trusted reporter shared via his personal Twitter account on Wednesday that the clause worth £89million was part of the deal that saw Phillippe Coutinho leave Anfield in order to join Barcelona.
Barcelona will have to pay a 100million Euros premium in addition to any transfer fee should they try and sign another Liverpool player before 2020.
The clause was negotiated by sporting director Michael Edwards as part of Philippe Coutinho’s £142million move. @TimesSport— paul joyce (@_pauljoyce) November 21, 2018
“Barcelona will have to pay a 100million Euros premium in addition to any transfer fee should they try and sign another Liverpool player before 2020,” wrote Joyce in his tweet.
“The clause was negotiated by sporting director Michael Edwards as part of Philippe Coutinho’s £142million move.”
OPINION
Edwards has played a blinder by having that clause included when getting rid of Coutinho as it massively favours the Reds. It’s unlikely Barcelona will try to steal one of the club’s talented players anytime soon as there is no way that can justify spending so much on one player, given the disadvantage they would be at. While some Reds supporters may fear that as soon as 2020 comes around that Barcelona will strike, they need not worry for now. The Reds will still need to see off other European giants who will likely come calling for certain players, for example Mohamed Salah, but having Barca not in hot pursuit does make the job to hold on to certain talents easier. The Reds struggled to stand in Coutinho’s way once Barcelona came calling and perhaps it would be the same with certain other members of the Reds’ squad. Therefore it seems Edwards has made a very smart move by putting in a clause which is effectively a penalty for Barca.
