Barcelona turn attention to Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen after Liverpool snub

Barcelona have turned their attention to Tottenham Hotspur's Christian Eriksen after negotiations with Liverpool fell through for the signing of Philippe Coutinho. The Catalan giants have been heavily linked with a move for the Brazilian but Jurgen Klopp has made it clear that the team are in no mood to sell.

The Independent reports that the Catalan giants have already made their initial move through intermediaries and are waiting for the player to respond. Barcelona want to sign an attacking midfielder this summer and have given up hope on Coutinho after the Reds released a statement stating their intentions to hold on to their prized asset.

"We wish to offer clarity as regards our position on a possible transfer of Philippe Coutinho. The club's definitive stance is that no offers for Philippe will be considered and he will remain a member of Liverpool Football Club when the summer window closes," the statement read.

The belief in the coaching staff is that Eriksen will slot right into the thick of things at Barcelona with his excellent vision and general style of play. However, they have to go through Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, who is likely to prove even more difficult to negotiate with than Liverpool, especially given the fact that the Danish international signed a new four-year contract extension in September last year.

The general mood is that Barca have to shell out a whole lot of money for the midfielder, with the price spiralling above £100m ($127m), given the prices currently being quoted in the market. Since joining Spurs from Ajax in 2013, Eriksen has grown into one of the best players in the Premier League in his position, finishing the 2016-17 season as Tottenham's players' player of the year and with 12 goals and 23 assists to his name.

However, in a recent interview, he admitted that despite having no immediate desire to leave Tottenham, it would be "hard to say no" to the Catalans if an offer does come his way.

"I have been there [at Barcelona] at some point and it was not very good," he told Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. "Barcelona are a great club and I do not think there are many who say no to Barcelona.