After a disappointing spell at Aston Villa Philippe Coutinho has been reborn after a return to his boyhood club
Philippe Coutinho is having a resurgence at his new club in Brazil(Image: Getty Images)
After a tough couple of years at Aston Villa, Philippe Coutinho has been making headlines for a very different reason after his quiet summer transfer to Brazil. Although he showed some promising spells at Villa Park, the midfielder failed to live up to anywhere near his promise in the Midlands.
But while many didn’t even realise he was still on the Villa books, Coutinho’s transfer to Vasco da Gama in the summer window has reignited something inside the 32-year-old, and fans can’t seem to get enough.
After he arrived from Barcelona in 2022, the number 10 showed some glimpses of his prime days at Liverpool, appearing in 19 games in his first season, netting five and assisting three more.
But as time went on, the same couldn’t be said, and with a failed loan spell in Qatar, he would slowly disappear from the scene at Villa Park, although he still cost the club a fortune in his wages.
Philippe Coutinho at Vasco da Gama.(Image: Riquelve Santos/Sports Press Photo/Getty Images)
Not part of Unai Emery’s plans, he cut ties permanently with Aston Villa earlier this year, and things began to turn. Since then, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich man has clocked up over 3,000 minutes, starting most of his games.
In that time, he has 11 goals and contributed to four more assists. That level of involvement has been regularly playing the full 90 minutes, starting more than coming off the bench -something he hasn’t managed since the 2018-19 season when he had an impact on the Barcelona side.
But it’s not just his string of goals that have caught people’s eyes; Vasco’s results have seen an improvement, too.
The Rio side has gone unbeaten in their last seven in all competitions, a streak that’s helped them climb away from danger in the Série A table and into the semi-finals of the Copa do Brasil.
There was even rumours he had earned a call up for the national team(Image: Richard Callis/Sports Press Photo/Getty Images)
According to Brazilian outlet Correio da manhã, via Sports Witness, Coutinho’s improved form hasn’t gone unnoticed by the national team setup either.
They write: “After terminating his contract with the British club and signing permanently with Cruzmaltino, the number 10 was ‘reborn’, being considered for a call-up to the Brazilian national team again, and could be one of the surprises on the list that Ancelotti will release.”
Although he ended up just missing out on a spot, with Ancelotti preferring the more recently proven talents of Bruno Guimarães, Joelinton and Casemiro, it is still being framed that the possibility in the future may still be open and is a stark contrast to his days as a Villan.
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