Aston Villa have reportedly received an offer from Besiktas for Philippe Coutinho, but the terms of the proposal perhaps won’t be enough to convince us to sell.
The 31-year-old made 22 appearances last season in an injury-hit campaign, contributing just one goal and no assists as he struggled to make an impact.
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Coutinho only managed eight Premier League games following the appointment of Unai Emery due to injuries, and so there was frustration that he wasn’t able to prove his worth and determine whether or not he will fit into the Spanish tactician’s plans moving forward.
The Brazilian playmaker’s contract runs until June 2026, but a decision needs to be made on whether or not he’ll get another opportunity to stake his claim next season, or if Villa are open to offloading him this summer and getting back what we can.
As reported by Sport, Besiktas have made an offer to loan Coutinho for a season with a purchase option of €8m, while they are only willing to cover 40 percent of his salary during that initial 12 months.
It’s added that the two clubs are negotiating and so time will tell if an agreement is reached, but based on those touted terms, Villa will surely be pushing for a more favourable deal before giving an exit the green light.
That said, much will firstly depend on whether or not Emery wants to have Coutinho as an option next season, as with our hopes of competing across multiple fronts, we need competition and depth across the squad.
The Villa boss is currently lacking in that department behind Emiliano Buendia in terms of having a playmaker who can operate behind the frontman and more centrally, and so it remains to be seen if he bets on Coutinho to give him that option, or if he has already decided that he wants to bring in a new face to provide him with that tactical solution.