Coutinho admits: Angry defender threatened to 'put me in the hospital' after I embarrassed him

Along with Daniel Sturridge, Liverpool attacker Philippe Coutinho is one of Brendan Rodgers' few genuine transfer success stories, and despite some shaky form this season, the Brazilian has emerged as an important part of the Reds' march to the title. It's still hard to believe that Inter Milan let Coutinho leave so easily (and so cheaply), and in a new interview, LFC's creative maestro has shed some more light on his time at the San Siro.

Prior to his move to Anfield, Coutino worked briefly under ex-Reds boss Rafa Benitez, and the Brazilian credits the current Napoli boss with turning his game around. He noted:

"At Inter, Rafa Benitez changed my mentality. He made me more of a team player and encouraged me to move the ball more quickly and get more involved. Now, with Liverpool, I am moving faster still and thinking even more quickly"

This is not the first time Coutinho has praised Benitez. In November, he told The Telegraph:

“I had a good relationship with Rafa. He was prepared to give me opportunities straight away. He was always very considerate towards me and gave me a lot of confidence. He cared a lot about all the younger players at Inter.

For 6 months under Benitez (at the age of 18), Coutinho made 15 appearances for Inter, 8 of which were starts against team such as Juventus, and Spurs (in the Champions League). Things changed, though, when the Spaniard left in December 2010. Coutinho made only FOUR appearances for the rest of the season, and was an unused substitute on TWELVE separate occasions.

To be honest, Benitez's interest in young players is a little surprising because, at Liverpool, he rarely gave teenage prospects any kind of consistent chance in the first team. There were no Raheem Sterlings or Andre Wisdoms under Rafa, but maybe that was because the young players in LFC's academy at the time were not good enough?

Ironically, however, before he left Anfield, Benitez signed three top-quality teenage prospects: Jonjo Shelvey, Sterling, and Suso. Shelvey may no longer be at the club, but all three were excellent signings, and Suso and (especially) Sterling have the talent to make an impact at Liverpool for years to come.

Coutinho also revealed that his trickery on the field once led to him being threatened by one of his Inter team-mates. During a training session in 2010, Coutinho nutmegged Italian defender Marco Materazzi, who took it badly. He recalled:

"When I got back into the dressing room, the masseur said he would buy me snacks for the rest of the week if I did it again. Materazzi told me he would put me in hospital. He wasn’t impressed"

That sounds just like Materazzi, who was aptly nicknamed 'the Butcher', and is easily one of the most reviled footballers of the last fifteen years. All I can say is it's a good job Luis Suarez didn't play for Inter; with the sheer number of nutmegs he tries, he would've been in the hospital every week.

Author: Jaimie K