Premier League duo Chelsea and Arsenal will be offered the chance to sign Philippe Coutinho from Barcelona when the transfer window reopens at the end of the campaign, The Sun reports.
The Brazil international is currently on a season-long loan with Bayern Munich but the German outfit are said to have no intention of purchasing him with the optional buy option.
As such, the 27-year-old will be heading back to the Camp Nou during the summer and The Sun claims that the Blaugrana could offer Chelsea and Arsenal with the opportunity to land his signature.
It is added that the Spanish champions will demand a fee of around £75m for the permanent sale of Coutinho but they are also prepared to accept another loan deal for the former Liverpool man.
Furthermore, the Catalan giants are willing to pay 50 per cent of the attacker’s £290,000-a-week wages in case the interested club decide to sign their player on a temporary basis for next season.
Both Blues and Gunners are likely to reinforce their attacking options ahead of the 2020/21 campaign and Coutinho could prove an ideal purchase as he is comfortable playing on the wings or in the number 10 role.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta may want a potential replacement for the ageing Mesut Ozil and Coutinho, who is at the prime of his career, should provide the additional creativity from the attacking midfield role.
Still, the north London side could struggle to meet Barcelona’s price tag for a permanent transfer, given they are likely to work on a limited budget with payments made in the form of instalments.
As a result, a loan deal would be ideal for them but that may provide the advantage for Frank Lampard’s side in the race to sign the former Internacional graduate.
Lampard will seek to add more experience to a young-looking attack during the summer, particularly with Pedro, Willian and Olivier Giroud possibly leaving the club at the expiry of their respective contracts.
Unlike Arsenal, the Blues have not spent during the past couple of transfer windows – partly due to a FIFA-imposed transfer ban, and they should have more funds in their kitty to land the versatile attacker.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
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