Sources: Aston Villa green light Coutinho move as ‘huge’ offer revealed
Aston Villa star Philippe Coutinho has been given permission to hold talks with Middle East clubs, sources have told Football Insider.
The 31-year-old is the subject of concrete interest from Qatari and Saudi Arabian clubs in the final two weeks of the window.
A Qatari club is believed to be in pole position to sign Coutinho as they discuss a “huge” offer to lure the player to the Middle East.
Football Insider first revealed Saudi Arabian interest in Coutinho in April towards the end of a wretched campaign for the Brazilian.
He is understood to be the top earner in the Villa squad and that has made it very difficult for them to offload him in the summer window.
Villa have told Coutinho he is free to discuss a move as they look to get him off their wage bill.
The Midlands giants converted Coutinho’s initial loan from Barcelona into a permanent deal last summer.
The Brazilian’s current contract at Villa Park runs until the summer of 2026.
Coutinho has played just three minutes of football for Villa this season after falling drastically down Unai Emery’s pecking order at Villa Park.
He made a superb return to England in 2022 under Steven Gerrard, scoring five goals and assisting three times for Villa in 19 appearances after joining in the January window.
However, Coutinho has struggled for game time since Gerrard’s departure in October 2022 and has been surplus to requirements under Emery.
In other news, Aston Villa in talks today to finalise Marcos Acuna signing