Earlier this year, it was said that Arsenal were interested in signing Philippe Coutinho, while Newcastle were also keen to keep him in the Premier League.
The Brazil international joined Aston Villa on loan from Barcelona in January, and his stunning displays at Villa Park have clearly attracted interest from other Premier League sides.
Coutinho has scored four goals, while also providing three assists, in 16 Premier League outings so far under Steven Gerrard.
Now, the Villans have dealt a blow to Arsenal and Newcastle.
What’s the story?
Well, at Aston Villa’s end-of-season awards last night, the club’s Chief Executive Officer Christian Purslow made a surprise announcement.
The 58-year-old revealed that Coutinho’s loan move had been turned into a permanent deal, as the Villans struck a €20m (£17m) agreement with Barcelona.
In our view, that is a fantastic deal, seeing as Barcelona paid an eye-watering £146m to sign the South American from Liverpool in 2018.
Coutinho turns 30 on June 12th, but for a player who has never really relied on his pace, this is a brilliant bit of business from the Villans.
Arsenal & Newcastle must move on
A player of Coutinho’s quality doesn’t always become available for just £17m, so Arsenal and Newcastle missed out on a great deal.
Nevertheless, there are plenty more fish in the sea, and it seems the Premier League duo are already looking to make moves.
In Newcastle’s case, they are said to have offered Inter Milan attacker Ivan Perisic a contract worth £107,000-a-week.
Elsewhere, Arsenal are trying to sign Coutinho’s fellow Brazilian Gabriel Jesus, and have already held productive talks with his agent.
Clearly, the Premier League duo aren’t intent on moping around feeling sorry for themselves after missing out on Coutinho.
Keep an eye on both situations, as we have a feeling both deals will materialise this summer.
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