Neymar’s replacement or in the Iniesta role? how will Barcelona use Coutinho?

Coutinho often plays on the right for Brazil to allow Neymar to operate in his favoured position, but the Liverpool attacker prefers to play on the left and could yet be a like-for-like replacement for the Paris Saint-Germain forward at Camp Nou.

Neymar revealed back in September that Coutinho was in a "moment of great sadness" after his move to Barcelona failed to materialise and another former Brazil and Blaugrana icon, Rivaldo, has tipped the Liverpool man to shine at Camp Nou.

"Coutinho is a very good player and if he ends up signing for Barcelona, he will succeed easily," he said recently. "I think he has the characteristics that a footballer needs to succeed in Barcelona. The style of play will suit him and fans will give him time to adapt. I think he will succeed."

Time will tell, of course, but following the signing of Dembele, it seems Barcelona see Coutinho as more of a long-term replacement for Iniesta in a midfield role like the one he has excelled in this season at Anfield, and in the meantime a player who can alternate with the Spain star in his twilight years.

Iniesta has already featured heavily for the Catalan club in the current campaign and that has surprised many given that he can no longer play every week over a long season. However, with Coutinho on board, he could be kept fresh for the biggest tests later in the season (notably the Champions League, for which the Brazilian would be cup-tied anyway).

"I see him as a great link-up player, with so much talent," Iniesta said in December. "He uses both feet, he scores goals, he combines up really well, he can link between the midfield and the attack.

"He is a player with a profile that fits well with ours and he would be a great signing if he arrives. I don't see him as competition for me, but as a boost for the club."

That is the thinking for Valverde as well and one of the conclusions from last season, when Barca missed out on La Liga to Real Madrid and exited the Champions League at the quarter-final stage, was the need for a larger and stronger squad.

When Neymar left, Barca decided to go for two top players (Dembele and Coutinho) instead of one, while Paulinho and Nelson Semedo have also added to the quality of the group since arriving in the summer.

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