Jamie Carragher warns Philippe Coutinho against making "reckless" transfer decision

Jamie Carragher has urged Philippe Coutinho to join Aston Villa on a permanent basis to avoid a repeat of his "reckless" decision to leave Liverpool.

The Brazilian endured a torrid time at Barcelona when he left Anfield four years ago in a £142million move.

Coutinho looks back to his best at Villa Park, however, making an immediate impact with foul goal contributions in his first three games following his loan switch back to the Premier League.

Villa have an option to make the loan move permanent in the summer and if he keeps up this form, it's an avenue they will certainly go down.

And Carragher hopes Coutinho will take them up on their offer and learn from his mistake when he left Liverpool in 2018.

“It is rare for any footballer to go through a career without having some regrets”, Carragher wrote in his Daily Telegraph column.

“Every decision can have an impact on the short and long-term future.

"Given what has happened since 2018, it would be strange if Coutinho has not often wished to turn back the clock and take a different path.

“If the positive early signs are a taste of what is to come, he may have a familiar dilemma should Villa seek a permanent £33m deal come the summer.

“To walk away from a club where the fans and manager adore him once would be careless.

“Doing it again would be reckless.”

Steven Gerrard reckons "vintage" Coutinho is on display at the moment and the Villa boss has praised his influence.

He said: “He was desperate to come back to the Premier League and we’ve given him everything he needs to go out there and perform.

“For me, the good thing about Phil is he’s so humble, so level-headed, he’s so grounded that you wouldn’t think you were dealing with a world-class star if you spoke