Betis and Besiktas interested in Coutinho

Real Betis and Besiktas have both made contact with Aston Villa to ask about a potential transfer of Philippe Coutinho, according to Fabrizio Romano. Villa are believed to be open to selling the Brazilian attacking midfielder, as long as it is on their terms. As things stand at the moment, it seems it’s up to the player himself to make a decision on his future.

Coutinho was arguably the biggest star at Liverpool at the time of his departure to Barcelona in January 2018. The Merseysiders resisted his intentions and Barcelona’s offers for several months, but in the end, they accepted a bid that could’ve risen to €160 million, which would’ve made him the third most expensive player in the history at the time.

Coutinho obviously got his wish, but things didn’t work out too well for him at Barcelona. He had a loan spell with Bayern Munich, before going to Villa, also on an initial loan, in January 2022. The move was made permanent last year, but now, the 31-year-old doesn’t seem to feature too heavily in the plans of manager Unai Emery.

Understand Real Betis and Besiktas have approached Aston Villa today to sign Philippe Coutinho 🚨🇧🇷 #AVFC

Villa open to let Coutinho leave at their conditions, the agreement on club side won’t be a problem.

It’s up to the player now. pic.twitter.com/APEgEEE8Wy

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 31, 2023