Phillipe Coutinho starred for Barcelona against Manchester United on Tuesday evening and caused controversy with his goal celebration.
Barcelona already had command of the Champions League quarter-final second-leg tie at 2-0 on the night before Coutinho fired home a wonderful right-footed shot from 30 yards out.
The former Liverpool midfielder then put his fingers to his ears after scoring, something which was a clear response to recent criticism.
His Barcelona teammates were not upset with the celebration when they spoke post-match. Instead, the likes of Sergio Busquets and Clement Lenglet defended the playmaker.
Lenglet explained: "I do not care about the celebration, what matters to me is the goal. Coutinho is a great player, he has balls."
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Busquets added: "I did not see anything. I know he celebrated with anger, with desire.
"It was an important goal for him after the criticism he has received. He is a world-class player."
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Meanwhile, despite links seemingly suggesting Coutinho might leave Barcelona amid his struggles since his big-money move from Liverpool, the Spanish giants are keen to keep the playmaker.
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"Coutinho is a great player, excellent, and he’s getting better and better," Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu told TVE. "It’s not easy to play at Barca, he was here for six months last season and he has the confidence of the coach, he’s a global player and we expect a lot from him. He will continue at Barca, it’s different and Barca needs different players."
