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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Chris Doyle

Philippe Coutinho makes Luis Suarez feelings clear as Aston Villa reach transfer decision

Philippe Coutinho's comments on Luis Suarez suggest he would be on board with the striker joining Aston Villa.

The Atletico Madrid striker has been linked with a move to the Midlands club with his current deal with the reigning La Liga champions set to expire in the summer.

Suarez was indispensable to Diego Simeone last season en route to the title, scoring 21 goals in 32 appearances in the process.

But he has been rotated this year with the likes of Joao Felix, Angel Correa and Antoine Griezmann all competing for a starting spot as Atletico's defence has fallen by the wayside.

Gerrard has already reunited with his former Liverpool teammate Coutinho who made an instant impact on his debut as he climbed off the bench against Manchester United to score the equaliser and salvage a 2-2 draw.

And now he has reportedly turned his attention to Suarez who had a brilliant relationship with the Villa boss during their time at Anfield.

Luis Suarez, Philippe Coutinho and Steven Gerrard all played together at Liverpool between 2012 and 2014 (Getty)

Could Luis Suarez still make the grade in the Premier League? Have your say in the comments!

Recent reports in Spain claim the Uruguayan forward is "focused" on a switch to Villa Park to link up with Gerrard once again.

Mirror Football understands Villa are not intending to pull off a sensational move for Suarez this month, however.

Gerrard's men could still potentially approach the former Barcelona forward in the summer when his deal expires at the Wanda Metropolitano.

And it's certainly something Coutinho would get behind as they still remain close friends from their time together at Liverpool and Barcelona.

When Coutinho joined Barcelona in 2018, Suarez secured a house for his former Reds teammate in the same neighbourhood that he lived in.

Speaking about his off-field relationship with Suarez after arriving at the Nou Camp, Coutinho said: "We were at Liverpool together and when I signed for them he helped me a lot.

"Other players, too, above all those that spoke Spanish and Portuguese - they're similar languages.

"We were always together and a great friendship came from that."

On the pitch, Coutinho has been equally as flattering when he has spoken about Suarez.

In total, the pair have played 106 games together for Liverpool and Barcelona.

Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho in action at Barcelona (Bagu Blanco/REX/Shutterstock)

He said during his time on Merseyside: “Suarez is a fantastic player.

"It is an honour for me to play with him. It is so much easier to play alongside a player like him because he is always on the move, he never stays still.

"When you have the ball it is much better for you to have a player like that because you can open the defence much more.”

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