The end of an ordeal for Philippe Coutinho. After three cumulative seasons at FC Barcelona, interspersed with a stint at Bayern Munich, the attacking midfielder signed definitively with Aston Villa, which paid no less than 20 million euros (plus 50% in the event of future sale of the player) to offer his services until 2026. Arrived in Birmingham last January, the Auriverde quickly adapted to the game offered by his former Liverpool teammate, Steven Gerrard, who sees in him “a model of professionalism and ( …) a role model for the youngest players.”
Author of 4 goals and 3 assists in 18 Premier League matches, the international with 68 caps (20 achievements) has enabled the Villans to secure their retention in the English top flight. In an interview given to Daily Mailthe former Liverpool midfielder returned to his failed stint at Barça: “It was not the experience I expected, but life is like that. The only time I worried was when I got injured. I was off work for nine months and had surgery three times. That time I was afraid to play again and things like that, but now everything is normal. »
Coutinho wants to stay at Villa
Despite his struggles at Barcelona, the native of Rio de Janeiro says that this bad pass will serve him for the rest of his career: “I also learned a lot during that time. It was a very difficult time for me, but it made me stronger in my head. From there, it was important to me. I missed him so much and now I feel more love for football. For a long time I was not very happy playing football, but here I felt happiness again. That’s why I decided to stay.”.
Still in the columns of the English tabloid, the 29-year-old also confides his well-being to Birmingham, where he sees himself playing for several seasons: “I’m very happy and just want to stay here (at Aston Villa). I regret nothing. It’s all part of the ups and downs of life. My dream was to play for Barcelona since I was a kid, but now it’s over and I can’t wait to see my future here.”. After rain the good weather…
