Brendan Rodgers reveals he tried to sign Philippe Coutinho for Chelsea when he was FOURTEEN
Brendan Rodgers has revealed he tried to sign a 14-year-old Philippe Coutinho while he was coaching at Chelsea‘s academy under Jose Mourinho.
The Leicester City boss explained how he already knew all about the Brazilian attacker when he became available in 2013 and why he jumped at the chance to take him to Liverpool.
‘When I was looking at the team in the first six months, there was certain ingredients we were missing,’ he told The Beautiful Game Podcast.
Brendan Rodgers tried to sign Philippe Coutinho for Chelsea’s academy when he was just 14
The Leicester boss explained how Coutinho had already committed to signing for Inter Milan
Rodgers eventually signed him while manager of Liverpool and he had a successful spell
‘Philippe was one I knew from my Chelsea days, because we tried to get him to Chelsea when he was 14 but he had already committed to Inter Milan.
‘We talked about him during the summer and kept tabs on him then all of a sudden he became available and at 19 I thought: “Wow, right, let’s get this boy in.”
‘And most people probably look at him and think he’s not for the Premier League but what a talent.’
The Brazilian scored 41 league goals and made 37 assists in his five years in England’s top flight
The midfielder scored 41 league goals and made 37 assists during a successful career for the Reds before moving to Barcelona for a record £142million fee in January 2018.
But a disappointing spell with the LaLiga side saw loaned out to Bayern Munich and now he is being linked with a return to the Premier League.
Chelsea could yet have Coutinho in blue with Frank Lampard’s side one of the teams reportedly interested in him, but they would face competition from Arsenal and Tottenham.
The midfielder has failed to live up to expectations in Barcelona and is linked with a move away
Rodgers believes Coutinho will be able to prove to any doubters that he is capable of succeeding once again.
‘He intimidates people when he has the ball with his quality,’ said Rodgers.
‘It’s sad to see, I hear people talk him down at the moment. This boy is top and if he comes to this league he’ll show that. He’s world class.’
Rodgers has backed the 27-year-old to show his ‘world class’ quality if he returns to England
