Brendan Rodgers reveals he received a text message from Philippe Coutinho the day he joined Barcelona

The Brazilian play-maker first arrived at Anfield in January 2013 during Rodgers’ tenure as Liverpool boss

Philippe Coutinho was unveiled as a Barcelona player this week (Getty Images)

Philippe Coutinho sent Brendan Rodgers a special text on the day of his £145m move from Liverpool to Barcelona, the current Celtic manager has revealed.

The Brazilian play-maker first arrived at Anfield in January 2013 during Rodgers’ tenure as Liverpool boss.

The two went on to develop a strong working relationship before Rodgers was sacked in October 2015.

Speaking to the Daily Record, the Ulsterman said that the pair remain on good terms.

“He sent me a nice text the other day when he was arriving in Barcelona,” he said.

“He is a great young guy, he was never a moment's problem for me. He was a magical player to work with.”

Rodgers added that Coutinho’s transfer made sense given his quality as a player: “It's brilliant for both as he is a Barcelona player if ever there was one.

“At the time when I brought him, he wasn't in the team at Inter Milan. People questioned whether he was big enough and tall enough.

“I'd seen him as a young player at 18 at Inter Milan around top players and I always felt he had the technical quality. And, of course, he was always going to get better physically.

“We kept in contact ever since we left.”