Coutinho left out of Barcelona squad after Arsenal swap proposal

INA – SOURCES
 
Philippe Coutinho has been left out of Barcelona's squad for their opening match of the season.
 
It comes after the Brazilian was linked with a swap transfer to Arsenal.
 
Barca welcome Real Sociedad to the Nou Camp this evening but Coutinho will not play a part, having been omitted by manager Ronald Koeman as the Blaugrana begin life without Lionel Messi in La Liga.
 
Messi left for Paris Saint-Germain last week due to the Catalan club's financial predicament which meant that they were unable to extend their star's stay due to the Spanish league's salary cap.
 
Coutinho has been billed to help fill the void by Koeman but he may not be a Barcelona player for much longer.
 
The 29-year-old is one of many Barca employees who are up for sale as 'Operation Exit' continues in a bid to raise funds.
 
Reports in Spain suggest that Arsenal have been identified as a side that could come to their aid.
 
It is claimed that the Blaugrana have offered Coutinho to the Gunners, proposing that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang comes the other way.
 
If the Emirates hierarchy want to keep their captain, Barcelona's second option is striker Alexandre Lacazette and no money would be involved in either potential deal.
 
Reporter Alex Rodriguez says that the transfer would not affect Real Madrid star Martin Odegaard from signing, tipped with a return to North London after spending the second half of 2020-21 there on loan.
 
The news regarding Coutinho, who is coming off the back of a lengthy knee injury and subsequent surgery which forced him to miss most of last term, comes just days after Koeman backed the playmaker to kick on this campaign without Messi.