Barcelona have reportedly shelved their plans to sign Philippe Coutinho.
Coutinho submitted a transfer request to Liverpool ten days ago in efforts to force through a move to the Nou Camp following a rejected £90.2 million bid.
That was followed up by a £114m offer which was also turned down by the Reds which came with Barca’s bizarre ultimatum deadline of 7pm on Sunday.
The Brazil international’s hopes of moving to La Liga appear to have faded according to claims from various Barcelona-based media on Monday.
Catalan radio station RAC1 reported that Liverpool’s refusal to even entertaining selling Coutinho has made Barca’s attempts to land the player ‘impossible’.
Spanish football expert Guillem Balague also indicated Ernesto Valverde’s side had been forced to concede defeat in their pursuit of the playmaker.
He claimed that Barca had turned their attention towards landing Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund and Nice midfielder Jean Michaël Seri.
Coutinho has missed Liverpool’s first three games of the new season with a back injury.
The 25-year-old, who signed a new five-year contract at Anfield in January, is expected to also be absent for Wednesday’s Champions League qualifier with Hoffenheim.