The book closed on one of the Premier League's biggest transfer sagas this weekend as Philippe Coutinho finally confirmed his move from Liverpool to Barcelona.Ever since reports first surfaced in July, the Reds have been peppered with rumours that their star man would depart for the Nou Camp. Although they managed to keep ahold of the 25-year-old through the summer, his want-away tendencies saw proceedings strain in January.Jurgen Klopp was forced to give up persuading the Brazilian, negotiations began to flow and a fee of £142 million was suffice to make the deal happen.The transfer hasn't been without its criticism, though. Questions were raised over Barcelona's intentions to sign Coutinho in January when they command La Liga and would be unable to deploy him in the Champions League.And for Liverpool, they now face the difficult task of replacing their star player and they have a mere three weeks to do so with players such as Thomas Lemar and Riyad Mahrez linked.
Jurgen Klopp needs to replace his star man
One thing is for sure, Kopites will hoping that Klopp does a better job of replacing Coutinho than Brendan Rodgers did in a similar position when Luis Suarez left the club.
Having narrowly missed out on the Premier League with Suarez hammering home a record-equalling 31 goals, the club eventually bowed to his wishes and accommodated a Barcelona switch.
Who did they buy in return? Rickie Lambert, Mario Balotelli, Lazar Markovic, Divock Origi and Dejan Lovren. Don't worry, though, Rodgers also brought Fabio Borini back from a loan spell away.
Furthermore, that's with over two months extra decision making than Klopp has and, as a result, comparisons between the Coutinho and Suarez exits are being drawn on Twitter.
The general consensus of Kopites, in spite of the Suarez handling, seems to be pretty positive and they make an interesting point. Take a look at the pick of the tweets:
Comparisons to replacing Luis Suarez
All in all, Liverpool fans believe Coutinho is far easier to replace than Suarez.
Salah, Firmino and Mane
While the loss of the Brazilian midfielder should not be underestimated, the possession of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane still gives them extensive attacking options.
There's an argument for a similar case in 2015 with Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge yet their reliance on Suarez's goals should not be underestimated.
Meanwhile, the 4-0 destruction of Arsenal in August shows exactly what Firmino, Mane and Salah can achieve even without Coutinho's supply line.
The loss of Coutinho is undoubtedly a blow to Liverpool and replacing him will be no easy task for Klopp, but things could be worse, it could be 2015.
Who would you like to replace Coutinho this month? Have your say in the comments section below.