Philippe Coutinho was re-united with his friend and former teammate Luis Suarez when he signed for Barcelona in a £142million deal last month.
Coutinho, who put pen to paper a five-and-a-half year deal with the runaway Spanish league leaders, played alongside Suarez at Liverpool until the Uruguayan made the same move in 2014.
Since his moving to Spain, Coutinho has made seven appearances for Ernesto Valverde’s side, scoring a goal on his fifth appearance against Valencia.
The Brazilian is still settling in to life at Barcelona, but Suarez is confident the 25-year-old will have no problems excelling at the Camp Nou, given he was Liverpool’s go-to talisman when Steven Gerrard departed the club in 2015.
“When the opportunity came up for me to come to Barcelona, I told Gerrard to look after [Coutinho] when I left,” Suarez told Barcelona’s official magazine.
“But then he moved to the Galaxy, so Philippe had to take responsibility himself and he put the team on his back.
“It didn’t surprise me to see him emerge as a player because I knew the quality he had, but I admire the responsibility he took on at such a young age.”
Suarez almost led Liverpool to a first league title during his sole season playing alongside Coutinho at Anfield.
Coutinho went on to establish himself as one of the most feared attackers in the Premier League after Suarez left Merseyside that summer, scoring 46 goals in 151 appearances over three seasons.
“When he’s on the pitch, he transforms,” Suarez added. “It may not seem like it, but Philippe is very shy and quiet. He needs to be more confident.
“That said, I’ve noticed a change between the kid that arrived at Liverpool and the player he’s become now. He’s still shy, but you can see how much he’s matured.
“I am convinced he’s going to give us a lot at Barca, as a player and a person. He has a quality which sets him apart [from others]. You could see that on his debut.”
