Good enough for Barcelona? Can Coutinho's post-injury dip at Liverpool be excused?

The Brazilian started the 2016-17 season in impressive style, generating interest from Camp Nou, but he has faded since shaking off an ankle problem
COMMENT

Maybe we should have seen this coming.

Possibly, Philippe Coutinho was looking to get his excuses in early as he prepared to rejoin the ranks at Liverpool following an untimely injury.

'Coutinho can be Iniesta successor'

Ahead of a meeting with Manchester United on January 15, with less than half-an-hour of football under his belt in two months, the Brazilian forward said: “The blow to my ankle was really hard and initially I thought I would be out for the rest of the season. There were a lot of nerves because I honestly thought my season was finished.”

Were these the words of a man who knew he was not quite right and that it would take some time for him to get back up to full speed?

Almost definitely.

Philippe Coutinho

Some 11 weeks on, though, are they also comments that should no longer be held up as justification of a dip in form?

Admittedly, this whole episode has been entirely unfortunate for Coutinho.