Philippe Coutinho completes £150m transfer to Barcelona from Liverpool in Premier League record deal

Barcelona has announced Philippe Coutinho has joined from Liverpool for what is the second-most expensive transfer in football history.

The Brazilian leaves Liverpool for a package totalling £142million after putting pen to paper on a five-and-a-half-year deal at Camp Nou.

The La Liga leaders announced the 25-year-old’s arrival on the official site with a video on social media showing his new locker room space and shirt – which is currently without a number.

It is understood that Coutinho will adopt the No.7 shirt for Barcelona which is currently occupied by out-of-favour midfielder Arda Turan.

Described by Barcelona in an official club statement as “one of the most talented midfielders in the world”, Coutinho is set to be in the stands for the club’s league clash with Levante on Sunday. But his official presentation is expected to be on Monday.

Coutinho jetted to Barcelona from London on Saturday and will now look forward to linking up with the likes of former Liverpool team-mate Luis Suarez and Argentina superstar Lionel Messi.

But Liverpool could, in theory, buy back Coutinho after Barcelona revealed how much his termination clause is: €400million – which is £355m.

They said in their statement: “FC Barcelona and Liverpool FC have reached an agreement for the transfer of Philippe Coutinho.

“The player will sign a contract for the remainder of the season and five more, and will have a termination clause of 400 million euros.”

In another statement, Liverpool said: “Liverpool Football Club today issued the following statement regarding the future of Philippe Coutinho.

“Liverpool FC can confirm Philippe Coutinho will be leaving the club after a transfer agreement was reached with FC Barcelona, subject to medical and agreement of personal terms.

“The player now has permission to complete the usual formalities to conclude the transfer immediately.”