Barcelona vs Liverpool: 8 Players Who Have Played for Both Clubs
By 90min
Barcelona host Liverpool on Wednesday night for the first leg of their Champions League semi final at the Nou Camp.
When the Reds arrive in Catalonia, they may see the familiar faces of a couple of former Liverpool stars. There are eight players in total who have donned the jerseys of both the Reds and la Blaugrana.
Let's take a look at who they are:
Philippe Coutinho
Having made the transfer from Anfield to the Nou Camp last January, the Brazilian became the eighth and latest player to play for both of these European powerhouses. Liverpool's attacking trio was previously a 'fab four' before Coutinho made the move to Spain.
After signing the former Inter man for a fee of around £8.5m, Liverpool sold him to Barca for over £100m. However, the midfielder is yet to justify the money spent on him, as he has struggled to nail down a regular starting spot at the Catalan club in his first 18 months.
Javier Mascherano
The highly-rated Argentine made the move to Liverpool following his shock transfer to West Ham in 2006. The feisty midfielder built on his reputation at Anfield as he became a first-team regular, forming a solid partnership with Xabi Alonso.
After three seasons with the Reds, Barcelona came calling and snapped up the defensive midfielder for a fee of £17m. During his time at the Nou Camp, Mascherano adopted a role in the centre of defence with Gerard Pique and went on to play over 200 times for the club.
Pepe Reina
Believe it or not, Pepe Reina used to have hair. Also, he used to play for Barcelona before he made the move to Merseyside. Starting out in the Barcelona C team, the Spaniard slowly worked his way up the ranks to first choice for Barca, where he made 30 appearances in the early 2000s.
After being shipped out to Villarreal, Liverpool took a punt on the keeper - a punt which paid off, as the former Barca man went on to feature nearly 300 times for the Reds. A fan favourite during his ten years at Anfield, Reina eventually left for Bayern Munich in the summer of 2014.
Mauricio Pellegrino
Forgotten by many, the former Southampton boss had brief spells at both of these teams. The centre back was loaned to Barcelona in the late 90s from Argentine club Vélez Sarsfield and made 25 appearances during this time.
After being moved onto Valencia, where he played over 100 games, Pellegrino arrived at Anfield in January 2005. Despite playing 13 times in the second half of that season, the 33 year-old was forced out later that year to Alaves, where he eventually retired.
Bolo Zenden
The former Middlesbrough man had a diverse career, which took him to a host of different clubs. Zenden impressed after coming through the ranks at PSV and earned himself a move to Barcelona where he would play under manager Louis van Gaal.
After spells at Chelsea and Boro, the Dutch midfielder wound up at Anfield, where he played for two seasons. Although much of his time with Liverpool was hampered by injury, Zenden featured heavily in his side's run to the Champions League final in 2007, where the Reds eventually lost to AC Milan.
Jari Litmanen
The Fin dominated European football with Ajax during the 90s, winning the Champions League in the process. Litmanen made the move to Barcelona in 1999 to reunite with former coach Van Gaal. Sadly, during two seasons at the Nou Camp which were plagued by injury, the Finnish international was moved on.
His destination was Anfield, where he started very well before breaking his wrist in his first season. Although he was part of the side which won a treble of sorts (League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup), the midfielder did not feature in any of the finals.
Luis Garcia
The Spaniard started his career at Barcelona B in 1997, where he impressed during his five year spell. After several loans followed by a permanent move to Atletico Madrid, Garcia was re-signed by Barca in 2003.
Not doing enough to earn himself a regular starting spot, the winger was sold to Liverpool, where he became a fan favourite at the club as he played a key role in winning the Champions League in 2005.
Luis Suarez
Suarez signed for Liverpool from Ajax in 2011. 31 goals in his third season earned the Uruguayan the golden boot, but was not enough to bring Liverpool the Premier League trophy.
It was this form that earned him a move to Barcelona, where he continues to play a key role, albeit in the shadow of Lionel Messi. The 32-year-old has scored over 130 goals in his five years at the club and is still one of the deadliest strikers in world football.