Even since Neymar finally completed his £197m move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain, the transfer narrative switched from him to his fellow Brazilian, Philippe Coutinho.

The Liverpool star has been the subject of masses of interest from the Blaugrana, with Ernesto Valverde's side having three large bids rejected for the mercurial midfielder.

The last bid was a whopping £114m, which would have made the former Inter Milan man the second most expensive player of all time.

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But, Jurgen Klopp's side stood strong in the financial onslaught for Coutinho and now, the Spanish giants appear to have admitted defeat.

They face the unenviable task of scouring Europe once again to look for some new talent, with a lot of clubs wary of Barcelona's rather shady 'tapping up' of players.

Ousmane Dembele and Jean Michael Seri have both been linked, but even they may be hard to come by due to the Blaugrana's poor negotiation skills.

They may have to look elsewhere and according to Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, they may have found a man to fill the void in their squad which they had hoped Coutinho would fill.

RB Leipzig's Naby Keita is the man now on Barca's radar and their pursuit of the Guinean international will prove yet another annoyance to Liverpool, as Klopp was desperate to sign him all summer.

Should Barca prove successful, it would be a hammer blow to the German manager, who has been desperate to strengthen his midfield.

Schalke's Leon Goretska is also another potential Barca target as it is clear the club have been made aware of their need to find a suitable heir to the ageing Andres Iniesta.

If Barca fail to acquire any substantial acquisitions before August 31, they face a season of true mediocrity, having only brought in Nelson Semedo, Paulinho and Gerard Deulofeu.

They are falling further and further behind Real Madrid and signing Keita would at least be a promising statement. Not to mention it would annoy the club who brought them to their knees with frustration.

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