Philippe Coutinho stance on Arsenal transfer as Aston Villa loanee opens up on Barcelona struggles

Philippe Coutinho is set to leave Barcelona this summer after four-and-a-half years at the club.

He became one of the most expensive players in world football when he left Liverpool for Barcelona in January 2018, but struggled to justify his enormous £142million price tag. Now he is ready to write a new chapter in his career.

Having joined Villa on loan in January, the Brazilian insists he is enjoying his football again, playing under a friend and former Liverpool teammate in Steven Gerrard. Speaking to Globo Esporte, he said: "I have a beautiful story at Liverpool, I was happy there, now I’m starting to write a story at Aston Villa."

He added: "I’m happy that once again I’m able to play well in England, as I’ve played in Italy, Spain and Germany. It’s hard to say what didn’t work at Barca. I had good times there, but the sequence and the way of acting were factors that could have been different."

Coutinho struggled with injury issues and a lack of match fitness as a result. On his injuries at Camp Nou, he said: "People have no idea how painful it is, how focused you need to be to recover. I did treatment in the morning, afternoon and at times, even at night."

He is focused on the future now that he has seemingly drawn a line under his career in Catalonia. And ahead of the summer transfer window opening in June, Mundo Deportivo report that Coutinho is only interested in joining two clubs.

Villa have an option to buy the playmaker for £33million at the end of the season and are said to be the frontrunners to secure his signature on a permanent basis. Though, reports in Spain claim the Brazil international has not 'ruled out' a move to Arsenal.

The Gunners are said to be one of several clubs monitoring Coutinho's