A flop in Barca, but jewel in Birmingham? Coutinho signs permanently for Villa

Just under two months before the start of the summer transfer window in Europe, Aston Villa already made their first signing. After acquiring Phillipe Coutinho from Barcelona on loan in January this year, the Villians made his signing permanent from the Catalonians today, which both clubs officially announced. It seems that 16 Premier League games, four goals and three assists were enough for Villa to persuade Barcelona to let him go for 20 million euros (the Spanish giant wanted 40) and sign him on a four year contract.

The architect of his arrival, Villa’s manager and his former team-mate in Liverpool Steven Gerrard was quite pleased.

“This is a brilliant signing for Aston Villa. Phil is a model professional and his impact on the group has been very clear since he joined in January. With the way he conducts himself on and off the pitch, he’s also a valuable role model for our younger players who can only benefit from his experience. As we look to build towards next season, it is incredible to work at a club that executes its business so decisively and smoothly” said Gerrard.

Mascherano, Suarez, Coutinho, Mane? Barca want another star to switch Anfield for Camp Nou

The Brazilian player debuted for Barcelona on January 25 2018 after arriving from Liverpool, where he showed his best football (54 goals in just over 200 games over the period of 5 years). He is Barcelona’s most expensive signing in history, just a year after they paid 105 million euros for Ousmane Dembele. He played 106 times for the club and netted 26 goals. His overall record at Barca is 65 wins, 24 draws and just 15 defeats. It’s completely safe to say that the Brazilian failed to meet the expectations since he arrived at Camp Nou. A combination of bad performances and various injuries (some of them serious) were the reason he never managed to impose himself as one of the best players in the world, and he has a chance for the ‘second career’ in Birmingham.

Goodbye, Frankie! It's time to go back to the man who 'launched' you

Unlike Aston Villa, who announced that they have signed the Brazilian for an undisclosed fee, his already former club Barcelona announced the figure – 20 million and 50% sell-on clause for any future sale of the player. The Catalonians were forced to cut the costs due to their financial problems, but insisted on the sell-on clause of 50%. They are basically betting on Coutinho’s good form in Aston Villa, which will bring him back into contention for the last big transfer (he is 29 years old already) in which Barcelona will recoup a bit of that grand 160 million euros sum for which they brought him from Liverpool in 2018. Time will show if their risk was the right one…