Philippe Coutinho transfer update as Steven Gerrard prepares to freshen up Aston Villa

Good morning and welcome to our Aston Villa coverage on Friday, February 11, 2022.

Here's a round-up of the morning headlines from the team.

Steven Gerrard and Aston Villa shook hands on a loan deal to bring in Philippe Coutinho last month which included a €40 million - or £33million - buy option.

The Brazilian, who turns 30 in June, has already chalked up two goals and two assists across his 174 minutes of Premier League football for Villa, posting a direct goal involvement - a goal or an assist - every 43.5 minutes on average.

"It was vintage Philippe Coutinho," Gerrard outlined last night after the South American's star showing against Leeds United. "He seems happy, we have given the stage to go and enjoy his football again.

"His vision and his awareness, if you don't love watching that you should stop watching football."

Gerrard also suggested that the Champions League winner "isn't at his physical best yet and needs more game time" which is a frightening prospect for Villa from now until the end of the season given what he's shown already.

has been informed that the fee to trigger a buy option on Coutinho at the end of the season isn't fixed at £33million, meaning Villa can barter with Barcelona's transfer chiefs should they wish to bring the price down a little.

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It's a day of recovery for Aston Villa at Bodymoor Heath for those that ran hard in last night's 3-3 draw with Leeds United.

Steven Gerrard's men gave Leeds a leg up early on and, despite racing away to take a 3-1 lead thanks to Philippe Coutinho and Jacob Ramsey, were pegged back twice with the head coach now desperate to iron out his side's defensive frailties.

Up next it's in-form Newcastle with Villa set to fly up on Saturday