The attacking duo have ensured a smooth start to Ronald Koeman’s tenure as manager as they played key roles in comfortable pre-season friendly wins. Over the weekend, Coutinho struck from the spot in a 3-0 win over Tarragona before he backed that up on Wednesday with a simple finish to open the scoring against Girona.
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The Brazilian’s opening goal was the product of a fine team move designed by Messi, who found Francisco Trincao expertly with a through ball into the box which allowed the youngster to square a ball across goal for Coutinho.
Despite both playing just 63 minutes on Wednesday, Coutinho and Messi dominated statistically in the final third to give Barca real hope of a flourishing partnership this season. Messi attempted a game-high five take-ons to show he’s lost no confidence, while Coutinho created a game-high three chances that included his assist.
“That is why we changed. It will be more difficult for the opponent if we change positions. Like Coutinho can play on the left, can play in the middle. Like [Antoine] Griezmann can play on the right, can play in the middle. Messi can play the nine, the winger inside, and it’s a good thing to have those kinds of possibilities.”
Rivaldo has previously declared that Coutinho’s initial struggles at Camp Nou came down to Messi taking “all the credit and responsibility”. In the wake of recent events, however, and based on their encouraging pre-season displays, there should be real hope around Barcelona that the duo can both star for the club this season as Koeman looks to ensure the side bounces back from recent nightmares.