Xtra Time Web Desk : English Premier League club Aston Villa on Friday signed Phillipe Coutinho on loan from FC Barcelona for remainder of the season with a buy option. The deal was finalized after the British club agreed on paying him 65% of his salary.
The move will now see the 29 year old Brazilian get reunited with his former Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard, who is now the manager of the club. The legendary former England captain had always been a supporter of Coutinho and on Thursday was quoted saying, “He’s won two league titles at Barcelona, two Copa del Reys. If you go and have a look at his Wiki page you’ll see a serial winner wherever he goes. He’s won 63 caps for Brazil, played for Barcelona and was incredible at Liverpool. So I can understand why he’s linked to a lot of football clubs. I can understand why a lot of supporters up and down the country are speaking about him. I don’t think you get a nickname of ‘The Magician’ if you’re not a special footballer.”
After the completion of the move, Aston Villa in an official statement said, “Aston Villa and FC Barcelona have agreed terms for Philippe Coutinho to spend the rest of this season on loan at Villa Park. The agreement, which is subject to the player completing a medical and receiving a work permit, also includes an option to buy and Philippe will travel to Birmingham in the next 48 hours.”
However earlier, Barcelona signed Phillipe Coutinho from Liverpool back in 2017-18 for a huge sum of money but didn’t have a successful stint at the club, although he made 106 appearances for the Catalan Giants.