Liverpool owner John W Henry says he cannot understand why Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho left for Barcelona and “30 or so meaningless matches per year”.

The former Anfield team-mates reunited at Barcelona in January after Coutinho completed his move to the Nou Camp, three-and-a-half years after Suarez had also joined the Spanish giants.

Jurgen Klopp’s side have not been unduly burdened by the departure of Coutinho midway through the season and will be facing Real Madrid in the Champions League final in Kiev on Saturday.

Suarez may have won the title in 2015 but Coutinho effectively abandoned his hopes for this season at least when he moved to Spain mid-season. Having played in the competition with Barcelona, the 25-year-old was ineligible to feature with Barcelona, who were eliminated by Roma at the quarter-final stage.

“Maybe it's because I'm an American, but I have a difficult time understanding why anyone would want to leave Liverpool,” Henry told the Associated Press.

“The club is so rich in history and tradition, supported by so many millions around the world, in virtually every country of the world.

“You don't want to be in the position where players want to go somewhere else, even if it is a great club like Barcelona.

“It's hard to understand why players would want to go to a league where the competition is so weak. They must play 30 or so meaningless matches per year waiting for Champions League matches.

“They'll be watching this weekend and could have been playing.”

Suarez, who left in 2014 for £75million, and Coutinho, who joined Barca in January, could eventually net Liverpool a combined £200m, with the deal for the latter worth an initial £105m, rising to up to £142m.