Philippe Coutinho Must Regret Joining Barcelona, Says Emmanuel Petit

Former Barcelona midfielder Emmanuel Petit has said Philippe Coutinho must regret his decision to leave Liverpool and move to the Camp Nou.

Petit told Jake Polden at the Mirror that he used to wonder why he moved to Barcelona from Arsenal in 2000 and believes Coutinho must feel the same way.

"If I was Philippe Coutinho, every morning I would wake up and think to myself, 'Why, why, did I sign [for Barcelona] in Spain?

"And do you know why I say this? Because, I can remember the time when I'd wake up, when I was at Barcelona, when I left Arsenal, and I was thinking the same way, 'Why did I leave? Why did I leave? Why did I leave?'

"And to be honest with you I am sure Coutinho has been asking himself the same question for a while now. He left for Bayern Munich, he does sometimes play well but he's not really a first-team player."

Coutinho became Barcelona's record signing in January 2018 when he swapped Anfield for the Camp Nou in a deal worth £142 million.

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Yet the Brazilian failed to live up to his massive price tag with the Catalan giants and was shipped out on loan to Bayern Munich in August 2019. 

Coutinho has fared better with the Bundesliga champions, netting nine goals and eight assists in 2019-20, and has produced some memorable moments in a Bayern shirt:

However, he is not guaranteed a starting spot under manager Hansi Flick, which suggests Bayern are unlikely to take up the option to buy in his contract, set at €120 million.

A return to Barcelona in the summer looks likely, with manager Quique Setien said to view Coutinho as an "interesting player" to add to his squad, according to Sport's Lluis Miguelsanz.

However, Barcelona have received interest in Coutinho from elsewhere. Premier League side Chelsea have offered to take him on loan with an option to buy, per Miguelsanz.