Since the start of Philippe Coutinho’s career, he has always had to prove people wrong. Coutinho always had to prove himself, even at the beginning of his first spell in England.
His career has not been the same since his €160M move to Barcelona, but the 29-year old will get a fresh chance back in the league where he excelled with Aston Villa.
Coutinho`s Move To Villa.
Coutinho’s loan transfer to Aston Villa was completed today and he will have the chance to impress Steven Gerrard till the end of the season.
His friendship with Gerrard was very important in the deal that will see Barcelona keep paying some percentage of the Brazilian’s salary. Aston Villa know they are taking a risk and that is why they pursue an “option to buy” as opposed to “obligation to buy” Barcelona wanted.
Last Chance For Coutinho In Europe?
Many believed the Brazilian was going to return to Brazil this winter, but talks broke down due to his huge wages. However, Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard knows the Brazilian still has a lot enough qualities to make an impact at Villa.
“If you go and have a look at his Wiki page you’ll see a serial winner wherever he goes. He’ has won 63 caps for Brazil, played for Barcelona, and was incredible at Liverpool,”
“I don’t think you get a nickname of ‘The Magician’ if you’re not a special footballer.”- Steven Gerrard on Coutinho`s signing.
Frankly, Coutinho has not played consistently in the past few years enough to get back to his best.
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In his first few months At Barcelona, he was still settling in and couldn’t adapt quickly to the way the Catalans played. Since then, he has had a stint at Bayern Munich where he won the UEFA Champions League.
At Bayern Coutinho looked more comfortable, but was not the talisman he was at Liverpool.
His performances at Bayern led Barça to recall him, but since he came back to the club, it just hasn’t happened for him. He has scored 26 goals in 106 appearances for Barcelona.
Now the Brazilian gets a chance to reignite his passion and become the star player of a team that wants to become established in the greatest league in the world.
Another chance to show and prove that he still has the qualities that made him so special at Liverpool. If Coutinho shines at Villa park, fantastic. If he doesn’t, he could be headed back to his native Brazil at age 30.
Best of luck to Philippe Coutinho at Villa.
