Brazilian playmaker sits down with Soccer AM's Adam Smith
Tuesday 28 November 2017 13:35, UK
Liverpool playmaker Philippe Coutinho has selected his dream five-a-side team from the players he's played with throughout his career.
The 25-year-old has a wealth of talent to pick from having ran out for the likes of Inter Milan, Vasco da Gama and Espanyol before moving to Anfield, while he has been capped for Brazil 31 times.
"This is going to be very hard for me because I've played with a lot of great players," he told Soccer AM's YouTube channel.
"I'm going to play with one goalkeeper, obviously, one defender, one midfielder and two attackers, very offensive because we need to score goals."
Here's who made Coutinho's dream five-a-side...
GOALKEEPER: JULIO CESAR
"When I arrived at Inter Milan, in this moment, for me, he was the best goalkeeper in the world. He did great things at Inter. He is one of the best goalkeepers I've played with. When I arrived at Inter I was so young and he helped me off the pitch. It was difficult being a long way from my family and friends. He is very quick with his movement and is also good with his feet."
DEFENDER: LUCIO
"When I arrived at Inter he was in his best moment. He won everything at Inter. He was very tough and trained as hard as he played. He's a really nice guy but when he arrived in the dressing room for the game he changed, you could not talk to him because he was focused on the game."
MIDFIELDER: STEVEN GERRARD
"This is an easy pick. He is one of the best players I've played with and I learned a lot from him. When I arrived at Liverpool it was a dream to play with him, a guy who I used to watch in Brazil and I used to play with on the PlayStation. Stevie G is the best midfielder I've played with. He was an idol for me and for everyone who watched him play, but when you were together with him, and you see him training, it was different, he was even better. He was great at shooting, passing and defending and a big leader."
STRIKER: NEYMAR
"He's not a bad player! He is one of the best in the world. I've played with him many times with the national team at U15, U16, U17 level. He has always been different. He will win the Ballon d'Or one day, it's coming, I think. He is the best technical player I've played with. He's very skilful, in training there will be five players around him them he'll do one movement to get away."
STRIKER: LUIS SUAREZ
"He is a top player. He's a killer in front of goal, if he has a chance he scores. I've played with a lot of strikers but I think he's the best one because he doesn't miss and he fights a lot. He's a family guy, he helped me a lot when I arrived at Liverpool and he's really nice."
CAPTAIN: GERRARD
"He's the leader. Simple."
MANAGER: TITE
"He's great. He's doing great things for Brazil and is one of the best coaches I've had. I have learned a lot from him."
Catch the full interview with Philippe Coutinho on the Soccer AM YouTube channel
