Video: Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho was a handy futsal player as a kid

Liverpool fans have been delighting in the silky skills of new signing Philippe Coutinho in recent weeks and this video might give a hint as to where he picked up those skills in the first place.

The 20-year old Brazilian has been a revelation at Anfield since joining from Inter Milan in January and was particularly impressive during the 6-0 defeat of Newcastle on Saturday, where he played a crucial role in a number of goals and only the crossbar denied him from getting on the scoresheet himself.

Given Coutinho’s quick feet and his ability to execute a neat trick or two it is no surprise to learn that, like a number of Brazilian players, he was quite a handy futsal player in his youth, as this video taken when Coutinho was a 12-year old in 2005 quite clearly illustrates.

In case you can’t tell, Coutinho is the number 13 humiliating opponents and weaving through defences with ease in the video above and there are a few Newcastle defenders who will be able to empathise with those who suffered at Coutinho’s expense when he was a young lad showing off the talents that would eventually get him to where he is today.

Impressive stuff.

Hat-tip: Balls.ie