A permanent move for Philippe Coutinho ‘is the kind of signing you want to see’ from Aston Villa, Frank McAvennie has told Football Insider.
The lowdown
The 29-year-old is currently on loan at Villa Park from Barcelona until the end of the 2021/22 season. The Midlands outfit are believed to hold the option to sign him permanently for a fee of around £33m.
According to a report from The Daily Mail’s Tom Collomosse on Friday, Steven Gerrard is keen to do just that.
The latest
McAvennie doesn’t see a major obstacle in the way of a permanent signing and thinks that Coutinho will be keen to remain at Villa Park long-term.
He told Football Insider: “I see no problems here and this is the kind of signing you want to see from Villa. He’s been brilliant for them so I’m sure he will want to stay and continue that.”
Meanwhile, Kevin Phillips has said that the prospective move would be evidence of the allure of working with Gerrard.
The former Villa striker told Football Insider: “Steven Gerrard has that pull to bring someone like that into the football club and get the best out of him.
“He knows him well. I think that was always one of the reasons why Coutinho came to Villa, because of the manager.”
The verdict
Coutinho has been outstanding for Villa since he joined, scoring four goals and providing three assists in nine Premier League matches, averaging one direct goal contribution every 98 minutes.
Even though he only arrived midway through the season, he already ranks joint-third in the Villa squad for goal involvements (level with Matty Cash and Jacob Ramsey, behind Danny Ings on 10 and Ollie Watkins on eight).
The fee also looks realistic for Villa given that they paid £33m to sign Emiliano Buendia from Norwich City last summer and also broke the £30m mark to land Watkins.
If a permanent deal for Coutinho gets done, it could be the kind of signing which fuels a push for European football in Gerrard’s first full season at the helm.
In other news, Gerrard is also eyeing this former Anfield team-mate for Villa