Jamie Carragher has told Aston Villa that signing Philippe Coutinho in the summer for ‘£33 million’ would be a ‘snip’, as he told Sky Sports.
The Sky pundit thinks Coutinho just needed to be ‘loved’ and he feels he is getting that now at Villa under the stewardship of Steven Gerrard.
Aston Villa have loaned Coutinho from Barcelona until the end of the season and they seemingly have the option to make that move permanent in the summer.
Ever since moving to the Nou Camp, things haven’t gone the way the 29-year-old would have liked and it has been an unforgettable few years for the player.
But he will be hoping that life in the West Midlands can take him back to the heights that saw him lauded as one of the Premier League’s best.
Given the start the Brazil international has had, Carragher is no doubt what Villa should do in the summer.
“It may not just be the Premier League (that works for him),” said Carragher. “It’s maybe the managers he has had, in terms of Brendan Rodgers, when he has been at his best. Jurgen Klopp and Steven Gerrard.
“Steven Gerrard had a quote when he came back to the Premier League that he ‘just needs to be loved’. Now, it’s an easy thing to say. A throwaway line.
“You think of those managers, I have just mentioned, and that’s the characteristics of those managers. That thing about being the main man. Everyone trying to get the ball to him all the time.
“He definitely has something to prove in coming back, in terms of, ‘I am still a big player’. He scored a wonder goal for Brazil. He is still playing for them. If Aston Villa can get him sorted at the end of the season, for £33 million, then it’s a snip.”
It’s still early days for Coutinho at Villa Park, but he already has two goals and two assists to his name.
Even if his form well and truly goes out of the window, he has surely shown enough that Villa should sign him up in the summer.
At the end of the day, he hasn’t been playing regularly for a long while, so he needs to get that sharpness back in his legs.
Whilst he is showcasing serious magic already, he may not be at his absolute best until next season, when he has a proper pre-season under his belt.
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