Philippe Coutinho gives seal of approval to 'rare' Brazilian talent after claims Liverpool will push to sign him

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Five years and 54 goals later, the Reds made a £134m profit as they sold him to Barcelona.The experience of betting on a relatively unknown Brazilian gem paid off in a big way for Liverpool, but they have been reluctant to follow the same path ever since.With Coutinho now plying his trade back home with Vasco, though, the ‘little magician’ may have just given Liverpool the vote of confidence they need to go out and sign young teammate Rayan Vitor.Photo by MB Media/Getty ImagesPhilippe Coutinho lets Rayan take crucial penaltyLiverpool were linked with a move for Rayan late last week, with reports claiming that a £34m move could be activated in January.Whether that will pan out remains to be seen, but what can be said for certain is that Rayan is in fine form in Brazil.READ MORE: Liverpool put in call to sign ‘very strong’ Barcelona defender but were swiftly rejectedThat continued on Sunday evening, when the 19-year-old hit two goals in an important 4-3 win for Vasco over Vitoria.Having gone ahead early, Fernando Diniz’s team soon fell behind before half-time. Rayan brought them level early in the second-half, before a penalty was awarded with 22 minutes left to play.Former Liverpool hero Coutinho is Diniz’s usual penalty taker, however, as Rayan told Globo after the game, the 33-year-old was happy to let his much younger teammate assume responsibility.“Coutinho and I always talk,” the teenager said of the penalty.

It worked out.”Vasco went on to win 4-3, with Coutinho’s trust in Rayan perfectly justified.Liverpool scouts would have been impressed by RayanThere is clearly a reason why Liverpool have been tracking Rayan. The Brazil U20 star has been in the Vasco senior team since he was 16.And if Reds scouts were indeed in attendance at the Sao Januario on Sunday evening, they will have had even more reason to be impressed by Rayan.

His penalty was taken expertly as he ran around the ball to dispatch it with aplomb into the top corner.Rayan’s earlier finish was a more simple one, as he fired home a good ball across from inside the six-yard box. If he’s good enough for Coutinho, he’ll do for us.