Barcelona Boss Ernesto Valverde Gives Backing to Philippe Coutinho

Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has backed Philippe Coutinho to find some form amid speculation from fans of a rift between the Brazilian and his team-mates.

Coutinho failed to impress in Barca's 2-0 win over Girona on Sunday as he missed some promising chances, but Valverde reserved praise for him after the match.

Per Sport's Jordi Gil, he said:

"What I like about Coutinho is that he's daring and he's always prepared to take the opposition on.

"He makes things happen. After that, sometimes things go your way, sometimes they don't. He's had good chances and the fact that he's getting into those positions one-on-one with the goalkeeper is really good. He's not converted those chances this time, but he will."

Coutinho started on the left flank, where ESPN's Samuel Marsden felt he was left out by Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba as they combined throughout the game, including for the former's goal to make it 2-0:

A number of Twitter users speculated that Messi and Alba deliberately chose to ignore Coutinho at times:

The 26-year-old has contributed six goals and five assists in all competitions this season, but he has only produced one apiece in his last 13 appearances for the Blaugrana.

It is not the kind of form Barca will have been hoping for when they splashed out £146 million (€168 million) to sign him from Liverpool a year ago.

While it would be difficult for almost any player to live up to the expectations that come with that kind of price tag, his recent efforts have not only fallen well short of those but also the standard he can be capable of more generally.

Grup 14's Rafael Hernandez remarked on his disappointing recent form:

It would seem a little unlikely that Messi and Alba are deliberately excluding him. However, given their chemistry with one another, it comes as no surprise they're seeking each other out, particularly if Coutinho has not been delivering much of late.

It's possible Coutinho will never live up to a price tag that was not of his own making, although it's clear he can be offering much more than he is at present.

His manager's decision to back him rather than criticise him could help his confidence, but he needs to repay Valverde's faith with performances on the pitch.