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Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho has sealed a remarkable return to the Premier League after joining Aston Villa on a six-month loan deal on Friday. The 29-year-old, who endured a forgetful stint at Barcelona since leaving Liverpool on a £142 million deal in 2018, has been actively on the lookout for a new club.
Coutinho has now been reunited with former teammate and captain Steven Gerrard at Villa Park. Gerrard, who played alongside Coutinho from 2013-15, was appointed manager of Aston Villa after the sacking of Dean Smith earlier this season.
Notably, Villa also have the option of buying Coutinho permanently at the end of his loan spell. Barcelona have been crippled by their financial crisis and have succeeded in offloading one of their highest earners, albeit temporarily, for now. It has been reported that Villa will pay the bulk of the Barcelona midfielder's salary.
In an official statement, Aston Villa announced:
“Aston Villa and FC Barcelona have agreed terms for Philippe Coutinho to spend the rest of this season on loan at Villa Park."
“The agreement, which is subject to the player completing a medical and receiving a work permit, also includes an option to buy and Philippe will travel to Birmingham in the next 48 hours.”
Coutinho could make Aston Villa debut against Manchester United
Following his return to England, Coutinho may be in contention to make his Villa debut against Manchester United next weekend. Steven Gerrard's men are in action against the Red Devils in the FA Cup on Monday, but have another meeting with the English giants in the Premier League next Saturday.
It will be interesting to see if the former Liverpool man makes an appearance against his old rivals Manchester United. Notably, Villa registered a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture between the sides at Old Trafford earlier this season.
As expected, Coutinho linking up with Gerrard at Villa has sent social media into a frenzy. Football fans from across the globe expressed their thoughts on the transfer. Amidst the chaos, an old tweet from former Villa captain Jack Grealish even resurfaced.
On that note, here are some of the best tweets on the same:
