Why isn’t Philippe Coutinho playing in Barcelona vs Chelsea Champions League second leg?
Barcelona will be without their star January signing as they take on Chelsea
BARCELONA are unable to play record signing Philippe Coutinho as they take on Chelsea in the Champions League.
Despite costing up to £142m, the former Liverpool man, who was burgled three weeks ago in his Catalan home, will not be able to showcase his talent at Stamford Bridge.
Why isn't Philippe Coutinho playing for Barcelona against Chelsea?
Barcelona are unable to pick the Brazil star for their match against Chelsea - or in any Champions League match for that matter.
Coutinho's exploits in the group stage with Liverpool have ruled him out of any further action in the competition this season.
Under Uefa rules, no player can play for two clubs in the same competition in one season.
Can Olivier Giroud play for Chelsea against Barcelona?
Olivier Giroud is able to play Champions League football for the Blues as he only represented Arsenal in the Europa League this season.
Can Alexis Sanchez, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang play in Europe this season?
Sanchez and Mkhitaryan are able to play for their new teams after being swapped between Arsenal and Manchester United.
But Aubameyang will not be able to represent Arsenal in the Europa League.
Although he only played for Dortmund in the Champions League, clubs in Europe are allowed to register just one new player over winter.
Arsenal's extra registration was used on Henrikh Mkhitaryan following his move from United.