Aston Villa midfielder Philippe Coutinho will reject a transfer to Corinthians in January. But the Brazilian Serie A side will retain their interest as he fights for a place under Unai Emery.
That is according to Sky Sports, which reports Coutinho has no interest in sealing a transfer from Aston Villa to Corinthians this month. Timao chiefs have explored a swoop for the 30-year-old amid his plight in Birmingham. Yet he does not want to return to his home country.
Coutinho has only started six of his 17 Premier League appearances since securing a £17m transfer from Barcelona last May. Steven Gerrard targeted a permanent deal after his initial loan spell, which included a £33m option to buy. But the switch has not worked out so far.
Through 659 minutes of top-flight action under Gerrard and Emery, Coutinho has failed to provide a single goal or assist. He is also yet to start a match since Emery replaced Gerrard at the helm in November. His five games under the Spaniard have totalled just 90 minutes.
Gerrard sought to retain his former Liverpool teammate in the off-season as Coutinho had offered five goals and three assists whilst on loan. Yet each of his assists and four of those goals came during his first eight of 19 appearances. He then went 10 without offering any.
Coutinho must improve at Aston Villa as he snubs a transfer to Corinthians
So, Corinthians have explored a transfer for Coutinho this January but the midfielder does not want to leave Aston Villa. He will now remain in Birmingham for the rest of the season. But Timao chiefs will retain their interest in the 69-cap Brazil star for the summer window.
Coutinho is under contract at Villa Park through to June 2026 on a £125k-a-week deal. Yet Emery will, no doubt, want to see more from the Rio de Janeiro native going forward. The playmaker also failed to score or offer an assist during Villa’s 2-1 FA Cup loss to Stevenage.
Emery gave Coutinho – whom Gerrard called ‘world-class’ – his only start of his tenure so far against the League Two side. Yet the Spaniard saw enough after 66 minutes to replace Coutinho with Emiliano Buendia. His shooting against Stevenage was wild, to say the least.