Football
Glenn Price, Liverpool correspondent 7y

Liverpool feels like my home - Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho

Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho has declared his happiness at club and insists there is much more to come from him.

Coutinho, 24, is in his fifth season at Liverpool since joining from Inter Milan almost four years ago and has developed into one of the team's best players in that time.

The Brazilian playmaker has been named the club's player of the year for the past two seasons and will be in the running for the award again after an impressive to start to the 2016-17 campaign.

"Liverpool feels like my home," Coutinho told the Liverpool Echo. "I feel happy, settled and comfortable here with the city and the people.

"It's an amazing city. I enjoy going to the cinema with my wife and to restaurants in town. The supporters are very nice. Hearing people singing my name, it inspires me.

"The fans here make me feel amazing. They give all the players confidence. They are there for us in every game."

After scoring 12 goals last season -- his best return as a Liverpool player -- Coutinho is already well on his way to beating that tally in 2016-17 having found the back of the net four times in seven appearances.

Coutinho has become an integral component in Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool side and believes he can take his game to another level under the tutelage of the German.

"Maybe this is the best I've played but I still think I can improve," he said. "This is just the start. I always want to improve and do better.

"I want to be an important player for this team. I want to help my teammates to achieve great things. Jurgen has helped me to develop a lot as a player. I really enjoy working with this manager. He has given me a lot of confidence.

He added: "The team plays differently now. We play high-pressure football. This style suits us and this manager is so important for Liverpool. I believe in this squad. The manager has changed a lot. He has changed the mentality of the group.

"We are in a good way. We have a good team, but we have to show it every day and in every game. We can't look too far ahead. We have to take it step by step, game by game. Maybe at the end we can win."

Coutinho was part of Brendan Rodgers' side that came close to lifting the Premier League title in 2013-14 and the Brazil international hopes the change the fact he is yet to win a medal with the Reds despite appearing in two cup finals last term.

"What I really want is to lift the trophies for this club," he continued. "That's the most important thing. You want to look back at the end of your career and think about what you have won.

"We have been so close but we don't want this any more. We don't want to just go close. We want to take that next step. Every day we work hard in training to get there."

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