Premier League side Aston Villa wants to sign midfielder Philippe Coutinho on a permanent deal.
The Brazilian arrived at Villa in January from Barcelona on a six months loan deal after being convinced by former teammate Steven Gerrard and owing to his sterling outing, they want to turn the deal into a permanent one.
Things haven’t worked out for Coutinho at Barcelona following his big-money move in 2018 and report are rife that the Laliga giants want to see his back and they want him off their wage bill.
Aston Villa are working on final details to sign Philippe Coutinho on a permanent deal. Steven Gerrard says: “I can repeat I’m extremely keen to keep Coutinho here permanently, we’re trying and we’re aligned”. ⌛️?? #AVFC
Final detail missing: payment terms. Work in progress. pic.twitter.com/49Shjhlmqd
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 11, 2022
A report from Catalunya Radio via SportWitness claims Barcelona have confirmed Villa’s interest in them. They say talks are progressing between the two clubs but that a fee is yet to be agreed.
There are claims that Villa has a clause in the loan contract to turn the deal into a permanent one for £34million something they feel they can afford but the problem is expected to arise with the player’s wage demands.