Lionel Messi wants Philippe Coutinho to stay at Barcelona?

Lionel Messi has reportedly called on Barcelona to retain the services of midfielder Philippe Coutinho.

With Bayern Munich unwilling to take up their option to sign their current loanee on a permanent basis, Barcelona have been left looking for clubs who may be interested in signing the Brazil international.

However, despite the possibility of the Catalan giants being able to recoup a significant fee for the playmaker, it appears that Coutinho remains wanted at Camp Nou.

According to The Athletic, Lionel Messi and a number of his teammates want Barcelona to keep Coutinho for at least another campaign.

The report suggests that they would rather see Ousmane Dembele, who has been plagued by injury issues and a loss of form, sold later in 2020.

Barcelona need to make player sales in order to boost their chances of signing any of their own targets.