Pundit spots big Philippe Coutinho problem for Aston Villa and Steven Gerrard

Philippe Coutinho has hit the ground running at Aston Villa but former Villa goalkeeper David James believes he shouldn't be at the club given the player's talents.

Speaking to GGRecon regarding Coutinho, James had this to say: "I was looking at Coutinho versus Leeds United and there were moments in that game which were absolutely incredible. The set-up for Jacob Ramsey’s first goal was one of the best passes of the Premier League this season. It was just beautiful, effortless.

“It’s one of those paradoxes - how can this player play so well, and be on loan to Aston Villa. It’s kind of like, if he’s that good, he shouldn’t be there. I say that respectfully.

“The downside is that his fitness looks absolutely shot. He makes a couple of runs and then he looks tanked. The difficulty for Stevie G and Villa is that if they can sort his fitness out and get that level of play from a fitter player, then Coutinho’s price and desirability goes up.

"At the moment, you’re looking at Coutinho thinking, is he a 60-minute player or a 70-minute player. He’s not a 90-minute player. And Aston Villa at the moment require a 90-minute player.

"I think if Stevie can keep him playing well, that’s one thing, and if he can keep him happy to be playing for Aston Villa and he expresses a desire to stay with Stevie at Aston Villa then in the end, that would be - I would argue - more important.

“He obviously enjoyed his time in England with Liverpool and where Stevie’s going with Aston Villa he could try to be part of a success story at the club.

"At first I wasn’t sure about Coutinho at Villa - all the headlines were about Stevie recruiting an old teammate - but he looks happy.”

Coutinho has recorded two goals and two assists in a Villa shirt