Philippe Coutinho Becomes Brazil's Lead Protagonist

06/27/2018 - 09h58

The spotlight is on Neymar, but Philippe Coutinho, 26, assumed the role of Brazil's lead protagonist at the World Cup.

Scorer of two of the three Brazilian goals, he was one of the six players elected best player of the match twice in the world championship.

Tite has already put Coutinho on the left and center.

	Lucas Figueiredo/CBF
	Philippe Coutinho in Moscow

Against Costa Rica, after Firmino came on for Paulinho, it was up to Coutinho to put some pressure and help in chance creation. He scored a goal in Brazil's 2-0 win.

For the first time, he scored goals in three consecutive games playing for Brazil. He is the third highest scorer since Tite took over as coach, with eight goals – Neymar and Gabriel Jesus are the two first, having scored ten goals each.

While Neymar enjoys the spotlight, Coutinho prefers a quiet life.

He made the leap from Brazilian club Vasco to Inter Milan in 2008, but left the country two years later, when he turned 18.

He did not stay in Milan and was loaned to Espanyol (Esp), where he caught the attention of the Italian club. In 2013, he went to Liverpool for €13 million (R$ 57 million).

Playing for Liverpool, he transitioned from a promising player to a reference. In five years, he scored 54 goals. In the last transfer window, went to Barcelona for € 160 million (almost R$ 700 million), the second most expensive negotiation in history, after Neymar's.

Translated by ANA BEATRIZ DEMARIA

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