According to rumours from his native Brazil, Aston Villa are loaning Philippe Coutinho to Al-Duhail in Qatar on a loan agreement with an intriguing clause.
Coutinho was a big-name signing for Aston Villa in January 2022, after his former Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard tempted him away from Barcelona. However, he has only scored once in the Premier League since making his original loan transfer permanent that summer.
Coutinho, who is less popular with Unai Emery, might now leave Aston Villa once the English transfer market closes. Clubs in Qatar can still register new players until September 18, which has led to Al-Duhail’s acquisition.
According to UOL, the Qatari champions, located in Doha, have agreed to sign Coutinho on a season-long loan. There is no mention of a permanent transfer option or obligation, but there will be a condition allowing them to prolong his loan for a second season if they so desire.
Coutinho is under contract with Aston Villa until 2026, therefore if Al-Duhail exercised their option, he would return before the end of his contract.
Ex-Sunderland forward Isaac Lihadji, former Portugal international Ruben Semedo, and recent Southampton midfielder Ibrahima Diallo are all in the Al-Duhail roster. Hernan Crespo, a former Chelsea, Inter, and Argentina striker, is their manager.
Crespo was a player at Inter when the Nerazzurri signed Coutinho in 2008. They never shared a pitch, however, because Coutinho didn’t make his Inter debut until 2010, a year after Crespo had moved on to Genoa.
Besiktas also fought for the sale of Coutinho.
Despite significant speculation regarding a move to the Middle East, Coutinho’s arrival at Al-Duhail was not a given conclusion. According to UOL, Besiktas made a late attempt to keep him in Europe by transferring him to the Turkish Super Lig.
After all, Turkey’s transfer window is open until September 15. TEAMtalk stated in February that Coutinho had already turned down a winter move to Galatasaray in Turkey.
Al-Duhail have won this time.
In comparison, he has only scored six goals in 43 games for Aston Villa. At the age of 31, he is now ready to take on a new challenge in the Qatar Stars League and the AFC Champions League.
