Liverpool are set to hold talks today over the long-awaited transfer of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona, ​​with the English Premier League club signalling they are willing to sell the Brazilian international if the asking price is met.

A transfer fee of €150 million – a record for a transfer into or out of English football – has been mooted by Liverpool, who want all performance-related variables included in that figure to be “realistically achievable”.

Both Liverpool’s American owners, the Fenway Sports Group, and the club’s manager, Jurgen Klopp, have publicly refused to keep Coutinho in the current transfer window. This is in direct contrast to the official stance in August, when Barcelona fielded a number of offers for the attacking midfielder. Behind the scenes, Liverpool have been working on a deal to recruit a high-profile replacement for Coutinho.

Thomas Lemar has spoken to Liverpool and, according to sources close to the French international, has decided to join from AS Monaco, provided a transfer fee can be agreed with the Ligue 1 club. Liverpool made an offer for Lemar – who is also on Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho’s shortlist – in the summer transfer window, but were outbid by Arsenal with a €95 million offer on the final day of the transfer window.

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Lemar was not convinced Arsenal was the best platform for his future career and turned down the move to north London to stay at Monaco. Liverpool’s continued efforts to sign the 22-year-old ahead of other suitors suggest the aggressiveness that saw the club beat out domestic rivals and pay a world-record £75million for centre-back Virgil van Dijk this month will not be limited to a single new signing.

As with every competitive game in the summer transfer window, Coutinho is currently sidelined with what the club are calling a “minor” injury – this time a thigh injury rather than the “back pain” the Brazilian cited when attempting to leave the club in the summer. The player’s representatives are believed to have reassured Coutinho that a deal will be done that will allow him to join Barcelona.

The La Liga leaders had indicated at the start of the transfer window that they wanted to cap any transfer fee for Coutinho at €100 million, as the club’s revenue would have to be used to cover the additional costs of extending Lionel Messi’s contract and signing a new centre-back. With Liverpool having done the groundwork for a replacement for Coutinho, Barcelona are now more confident that an agreement can be reached on the fee and that the Brazilian will be able to wear a shirt that the Catalans have already offered to their fans online.

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When asked last week about the threat to Liverpool’s season from a January transfer, Klopp said: “I try to be honest but you know that in January and in all subsequent transfer windows I don’t talk about it. Especially not about Phil. Something has already happened at our club. The only thing that interests me is how Phil is playing at the moment.

“I was really happy with his last performances and his impact. He showed character in the games and in training. He was absolutely right. That’s what interests me. I can’t and don’t want to talk about the rest, because if I open the door, you’ll run through it.”

“In my business, there’s absolutely no point in talking about things that might happen, because that leads to stories that 90 percent of the time aren’t true. Why would I do that? I’ll never do it.”