August 31 – When he was managing Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson rarely had a good word to say in public about deadly rivals Liverpool.
But the now-retired United legend has every sympathy with the dilemma facing Liverpool over the prospective transfer of star midfielder Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona on the final day of the transfer window.
Ferguson, like so many senior figures throughout the European game, wants the transfer window to shut before the season starts to discourage the kind of cat-and-mouse saga surrounding Coutinho’s future and ensure teams are prevented from adding to their rosters once the season has started.
Aware of Barcelona’s mounting interest, the highly-prized Brazilian midfielder handed in a transfer request even though Liverpool have continued to insist he is not for sale. Every player has his price, of course, and Leicester City’s Danny Drinkwater did the same thing this week once Chelsea’s interest became known.
Speaking at UEFA headquarters in Switzerland where he chaired the annual UEFA Elite Coaches Forum, Ferguson said: “If the window closed in July, Coutinho would have continued playing and it would have been gone. The matter would have been over.
“The recommendation we look at is to close the window before the season starts, so everyone knows which players they’ve got and aren’t waiting to see what the first results are going to be.”
“I think strong management is crucial in this situation. Part of your job as a coach also is to educate your players’ character so they have a responsibility to what they’re doing. Obviously, in some cases, that is changing a bit.
“It’s disappointing because I’m sure that, in the case of Liverpool, they did a very good job in making Coutinho the player he is today.”
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