John McGinn forces the hand of Aston Villa with rousing endorsement of potential signing
John McGinn has given a rousing endorsement of Aston Villa loanee Philippe Coutinho amid the club’s attempts to secure a permanent deal.
Villa’s form has been up and down for much of this season. Indeed, when Steven Gerrard took charge, things appeared to change for the better.
The Villans won three of their first four games under Gerrard. Furthermore, the manager’s ambition was clear to see when the January transfer window came around.
Gerrard set about making the squad his own with a number of top acquisitions. He brought in Lucas Digne and Calum Chambers on permanent deals, as well as Robin Olsen on loan.
The biggest coup of them all, though, was the loan signing of Gerrard’s former teammate, Coutinho. The Brazilian had endured a tough period with Barcelona of late, having started just five games this term.
However, Coutinho took little time in getting reacquainted with the Premier League. The 29-year-old contributed to four goals in his first three games in a Villa shirt.
His form has continued throughout his stay at Villa Park. In fact, Coutinho is Villa’s fourth-top goalscorer this term with four goals and has three assists to boot.
Villa midfielder McGinn, and the rest of the Villa squad are clearly happy with playing alongside such an accomplished footballer.
“We’ve been star-stuck, he’s brilliant, a breath of fresh air, not only for players like me but for younger players in the dressing room,” he told Sky Sports, quoted by Birmingham Mail.
“He’s so humble, he doesn’t treat anyone any differently.”
Villa will be even happier if they are able to land Coutinho on a permanent deal.
Villa aware of potential Coutinho fight
While Villa are keen on making Coutinho’s stay permanent, there has been interest from elsewhere.
Arsenal, West Ham and Newcastle United have all been linked with the attacking-midfielder. Indeed, McGinn is aware that Coutinho could perform for almost anyone in the Premier League.
“He doesn’t think he is above anyone and what a player he is,” added McGinn.
“He’s so talented and I think we can all agree that he is a top, top player and he could play for most teams in this league.”
While that may be true, Coutinho’s loyalty appears to lie with Villa and Gerrard. In fact, he is reported to be willing to take a pay cut to make remain at Villa permanently.
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