"Been aware since the moment he joined" - Insider drops big Aston Villa claim involving Coutinho

Aston Villa are ‘aware’ that attacking midfielder Philippe Coutinho would be ‘more than willing’ to compromise financially in order to stay at the club, according to journalist Dean Jones.

The 29-year-old arrived from Barcelona on a six-month loan in the January transfer window in a deal that included a £33 million option to buy.

Coutinho is attempting to revive his career at Villa Park after enduring a difficult time since leaving Liverpool for Camp Nou back in January 2018.

Barca paid an eye-watering £142m to secure his services just over four years ago and are thought to be paying the Brazil international around £480,000-per-week.

However, after registering just 25 goals and 14 assists in 106 appearances for the Blaugrana, Coutinho reunited with former Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard during the winter.

But despite the presence of the option-to-buy clause, making Coutinho’s stay at Villa permanent may not be as simple as it seems.

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The Telegraph claim that the South American star will have to take a significant cut to his current wage packet if he wants to sign a long-term deal for the Villans.

And Gerrard has previously stated that tying down Coutinho to a permanent transfer is ‘not as straightforward as people think’.

Despite the financial complications surrounding the potential deal, though, Jones has revealed that Coutinho is willing to compromise in order to make it ‘affordable’ for Villa.

He told GiveMeSport: “They’ve been aware since the moment he joined the club that if it was to go well, he would be more than willing to consider the amount he was paid and the way that the payments were set up to make it