Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has said that he is confident the club will be able to hold off Barcelona's advances for Philippe Coutinho this summer.
The Spanish giants have already seen a £72m bid for the Brazilian playmaker turned down this summer, but their efforts to sign him are expected to increase if Neymar completes his world-record switch to Paris Saint-Germain.
However, Coutinho only signed a new five-year deal in January, and Owen believes that Liverpool are in a strong position to keep hold of the 25-year-old.
"The news going around Spain is obviously fuel to the fire if the Neymar deal goes ahead - the speculation becomes intensive [regarding a] Coutinho move," he told PA.
"But he was happy enough a short while ago to sign a long-term deal and since then the club have qualified for the Champions League and strengthened the team. I think they played a really good move in signing him to a long contract because if the worst came they would get a lot of money for him, but I don't see it happening.
"Other than Coutinho not being happy I can't see how there is going to be a deal. It's inevitable that a lot of good players want to ply their trade in Spain but the situation with the length of contract has to count for something."
Barcelona have also been linked with Borussia Dortmund's Ousmane Dembele as a possible replacement for Neymar.
Barney Corkhill
