Barcelona face a race against time to sign their two targets - Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele - before the transfer window shuts on August 31.

They have under two weeks to get the deals done, which is looking increasingly unlikely following Friday's drama.

Liverpool rejected a third bid of £118 million for Coutinho and once again reiterated that he is going nowhere this summer.

Barcelona's failure to break Liverpool's stance came after general manager Pep Segura awkwardly claimed a deal for Coutinho was "close".

"We are close to Coutinho and Dembele," he said. "We are discussing their deals but do not know when it will be done."

Jurgen Klopp then responded to Segura's comments by saying he had no idea what he was going on about.

"I don't know why other people are saying what they are saying. I don't even know them," said a bewildered Klopp in a press conference on Friday.

"I'm not sure I have to answer this because we have already said what we have to say. Nothing new. No news from me and nobody has told me anything different since the last time we spoke."

Barcelona are showing no signs of giving up on their pursuit for Coutinho and, according to the Mirror, their latest bid has angered Liverpool.

The Reds have made it absolutely clear they have no interest in selling, yet Barcelona keep coming back with new offers.

So when a third bid of £118 million was received, Liverpool responded to the Catalonians by saying it was never going to happen and to leave Coutinho alone.

Most clubs would probably take that as a final answer, but the Mirror claim Barcelona have reacted to the setback by preparing another huge bid that could be made next week.

Barca have up to £198 million to spend following the sale of Neymar, meaning they will probably keep making bids until Liverpool eventually crack, even if it means waiting until deadline day.

It's the £140 million mark where the Reds would most likely admit defeat on Coutinho - it just depends on whether Barcelona are really prepared to spend that much.

Much will also depend on their interest in Dembele, who has reportedly vacated his home in Germany to try and force a move to the Camp Nou.

Dembele recently skipped training at Borussia Dortmund and has now been suspended by the club, suggesting he no longer has a future there.