Barcelona midfielder’s exit to Aston Villa is in the final stages – report

Barcelona signed Ferran Torres for €55 million before the winter transfer market even commenced. The player, arriving from Manchester City with high hopes, cannot even be registered, however, till the wage bill is brought down significantly. Mateu Alemany, for one, sounded confident about being able to register the Spaniard soon enough.

One way to decrease the wages is to convince player to revise their contracts. The other is to work on departures. It seems that Barcelona are leaning towards the latter as Philippe Coutinho edges a return to the Premier League.

According to Mundo Deportivo, the Brazilian’s move to Aston Villa is almost complete, with Aston Villa and Barça working on the final details of the contract. Barcelona are optimistic about closing the operation by tomorrow.

The 29-year-old was linked with a return to the Prem for a while now, with the likes of Everton, Arsenal, and Tottenham Hotspur chasing his signature.

Coutinho will now depart on a six-month loan but it is unclear whether a purchase option will be added to the contract. Villa have, however, rejected putting in a mandatory purchase option. Fortunately, it seems the Birmingham outfit will pay his salary, which is priority numero uno for Barça.

Currently, in 13th place, Aston Villa are struggling to climb up the Premier League ladder towards European spots. Losing Jack Grealish came as a significant push to them, but they have since compensated that in the form of some excellent signings in Leon Bailey, Danny Ings, and Emiliano Buendia.

Further, they were able to sign Steven Gerrard as the head coach who has won and lost four each since his arrival. The English manager played with Coutinho for two seasons before eventually moving to LA Galaxy.

Coutinho’s performances this season have been nothing short of a horror story. While he has scored two goals, he has created just the one chance all season (12 games). Consequently, he has been dropped from Xavi’s plans.

With the World Cup around the corner, that is terrible news for the Brazilian. Leaving Barcelona is the best move for all parties involved.