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View: Aston Villa star Philippe Coutinho deserves another chance to impress v Everton
Aston Villa midfielder Philippe Coutinho deserves another chance to impress boss Unai Emery following his impressive goal-scoring showing in the 4-2 defeat against Arsenal.
The Brazilian was rewarded with his first Villa start since Emery’s appointment, against the Spaniard’s former club, in which he bagged the home side’s second goal following a lovely flowing move.
The former Barcelona man has endured a rather difficult campaign before today, failing to establish himself in the team, and was even linked [The Sun, 7 January] with a move away last month, with Turkish giants Galatasaray interested in taking him on loan.
However, Emery chose to keep him at the club and stated [Birmingham Live, 10 February] that the former Barcelona man remained a key part of his plans at Villa Park.
And the 30-year-old certainly made an impression in the 60-odd minutes he was given against Arsenal on Saturday. As well as scoring his side’s second, Coutinho also completed under 80% of his passes, registered one key pass and won six of his 12 ground duels.
As soon as the Brazilian was replaced, that provided the Gunners with the opportunity to run riot and bag the two late winners in the closing stages.
Coutinho only joined the Premier League outfit permanently nine months ago and still has a contract until 2026. Also the Brazilian is in his prime years which means he still has a lot to offer Emery and Villa in the coming months, and his creative class is simply unmatched within the Villa camp.
Certainly, Emery will be undergoing a huge rebuild this summer which Coutinho may not be part of.
However, the Brazilian is simply too good to write off so soon, and for that reason, he deserves plenty of opportunities to make an impression to Emery starting against Everton on Saturday.
In other Aston Villa news, the club want to reunite with a former player for a fee in excess of £40million in the summer.