Philippe Coutinho watched Barcelona knocked out of the Champion league as his former side sailed in fly-colors to the semi finals
The Brazilian joined Barcelona in January for £142million record transfer fee after several move were turned down in the summer.
Philippe Coutinho reportedly demanded a move to join the Spain giant in the summer which was ignored but an agreement to sell the 25-year-old was later reached in the January window.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp opted not to replace him, instead keeping faith with his existing forward options.
Liverpool were knocked out of the FA Cup and haven’t been able to mount a Premier League title challenge - but their performances in Europe have been stunning.
The Reds surpassed Roma in the Champions League semi-final with a 7-6 aggregate score to book a spot in the final.
Coutinho’s Barcelona side, meanwhile, suffered a shock defeat to Roma in the quarters.
Former Red Player Paul Ince in no doubt believe the Liverpool team are playing better now than they were before.
Ince spoke to Paddy Power: “When you look at Liverpool’s recent performances, they’re on another planet to the rest of the league in terms of balance and having the right mix in the team.
“The amazing thing is, that’s is all of the back of Philippe Coutinho leaving.
“Everyone thought that when he left that it would weaken Liverpool – but it’s actually strengthened them!
“That’s because they were probably too reliant on the Brazilian. Everything had to go through him. With him out of the picture, other people have stepped up and not just Mo Salah.
“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino all have showed they’re not in Coutinho’s shadow.
“It’s much more of a team effort now, rather than it being all about one player.
“Yes, Salah is the standout man and that’s obvious, but every one of them puts a shift in.”
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