Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has labelled Barcelona star Philippe Coutinho a “serial winner” amid rumours of a move to Villa Park.
Coutinho left Liverpool in 2018 after Barcelona agreed a £105m deal rising to £140m with potential add-ons to take the Brazilian to the Camp Nou.
It has turned out to be a pretty disastrous move for both Barcelona and Coutinho with Liverpool going on to win the Premier League and Champions League since his departure.
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In just over three seasons, Coutinho has managed 26 goals in 106 appearances for the Catalan giants with Barcelona even allowing him to leave for Bayern Munich on a season-long loan deal in 2019.
There have been rumours that Coutinho could eventually make a return to Liverpool with Barca looking to cash in on the playmaker.
But it looks more likely he will move to a Premier League club lower down the table with Newcastle, Arsenal and Spurs all linked.
And Fabrizio Romano claimed that Aston Villa ‘are in direct contact’ with Coutinho’s agent as they ‘negotiate’ a potential loan move.
Aston Villa are in direct contact with Philippe Coutinho agent to negotiate potential loan move, as first reported by @tjcope @helenacondis. It’s not a done deal/agreed yet. #AVFC
Coutinho has been discussed with 3 Premier League clubs. He’s open and prepared to leave Barça.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 5, 2022
Sky Sports News presenter Rob Dorsett asked Gerrard about the speculation, and while the Villa boss wouldn’t comment on his side’s interest, he didn’t hold back in his praise of his former Liverpool teammate.
Gerrard said: “63 caps for Brazil, a serial winner, incredible at Liverpool, I can understand why he’s linked to a lot of clubs.
“I don’t think you get the nickname of ‘The Magician’ unless you’re a special footballer.”
Gerrard wouldn’t comment on #avfc interest in Coutinho but told me: “63 caps for Brazil, a serial winner, incredible at Liverpool, I can understand why he’s linked to a lot of clubs. I don’t think you get the nickname of ‘the magician’ unless you’re a special footballer” See #ssn
— Rob Dorsett (@RobDorsettSky) January 6, 2022
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