[골닷컴] Reporter Man-Sung Han = Aston Villa succeeded in signing a replacement for Jack Grealish following half a season. From Barcelona, Philippe Coutinho returns to England with a return to Aston Villa.
Coutinho recently left Barcelona to sign a loan deal with Aston Villa. First of all, Coutinho has signed a short-term lease with Aston Villa for six months. Barcelona, who signed Coutinho in 2018, did not live up to expectations and had to let him go, a high-paying player, considering the club’s financial difficulties. In the end, Barcelona agreed to a loan move to Aston Villa on condition that he would still pay more than 50% of Coutinho’s weekly salary. For Aston Villa, it was a low-impact signing.
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In addition, Aston Villa’s manager is Steven Gerrard. He once played alongside Coutinho at Liverpool. It was Gerrard who played a decisive role in Coutinho’s loan move to Aston Villa.
After the transfer to Aston Villa was confirmed, Coutinho told British TV ‘Sky Sports’, “I had a conversation with Gerard before the transfer was completed. He explained to me in detail regarding this club. He told me regarding the club’s ambitions and informed me of his plans. After attending a meeting with the club and talking to Gerrard, I decided that I wanted to come to Aston Villa. After that, everything went quickly and the transfer was completed. I am very happy to be able to play for this team.”
Coutinho then said, “I want to perform at my best at Aston Villa. “I want to make the second half of the season great at Aston Villa,” he added.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa have included a clause allowing Coutinho to sign Coutinho completely this summer, depending on his performance on a six-month loan. According to reports from Sky Sports, Aston Villa might sign Coutinho in its entirety for a transfer fee of £33m. This is only regarding a fifth of the transfer fee that Barcelona paid when signing Coutinho from Liverpool in January 2018.
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