Inter and AC Milan have shown an interest in signing Barcelona's out of favour midfielder Philippe Coutinho this summer, but they could face competition from a Premier League club.
According to a report from Sport (via Sport Witness), Leicester City have 'shown interest' in the Brazilian midfielder, and the three sides will now compete to sign him.
The 29-year-old has been out injured since December, and he has informed Barcelona that he will be joining their preseason training in order to continue his recovery from the injury.
Barcelona will conduct examinations on his condition, and if everything is fine, they will 'accelerate' in their efforts in order to sell Coutinho, especially with them wanting to raise funds to register new players for the coming La Liga season.
They want to raise funds from the sale, yet it remains to be seen whether any of the three clubs interested in him actually want to put forward cash offers for him, or else if they want to loan him in and then possibly get him for free or for a cheaper price since his contract with the La Liga giants runs until 2023.
The two Milan clubs are interested in bringing Coutinho in on a loan deal, with Leicester also looking at a potential loan deal with Coutinho being enticed by the prospect of reuniting with his former manager Brendan Rodgers.
Ronald Koeman's side are finding it tough to raise funds, with them struggling financially, and so they need to sell the players that the Dutch manager does not have in his plans in order to reduce the wage bill, with Coutinho being one of them.
According to Sport, Coutinho's contract contains a clause that states if Coutinho makes 100 appearances for Barcelona, then they will have to pay €20 million to Liverpool, and with him currently at 90 appearances, they need to offload him in order to avoid this situation.
Coutinho's agent reportedly has a good relationship with Barcelona, and they are set to meet next week, having 'face-to-face' talks in order to see the best move for all parties.
The Brazilian played 14 times for Barcelona last season, scoring three goals and providing two assists, as he struggled with injuries throughout the campaign.
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