Steven Gerrard claims it was “easy” to bring Philippe Coutinho to Aston Villa and get him to rediscover his form.
Villa stunned fans in January by raiding Barcelona to bring Brazilian star Coutinho back to the Premier League on loan. But Villa boss Gerrard insists actually persuading his former Liverpool team-mate to link up with him again was straightforward.
He reckons the star, who has four goals and three assists in 10 games already, was always likely to make a big impact on the pitch. But Gerrard has thanked Villa’s hierarchy for pulling out the stops financially to bring in Coutinho, who cost £142million from Liverpool four years ago.
And Gerrard’s candid remarks must be seen as a boost to his and Villa’s hopes of keeping the 29-year-old this summer, when the club have a £33m option to sign him permanently. Gerrard, 41, said: “Phil wouldn’t have come here if he didn’t believe in the club, if he didn’t believe in the people.
“He has experienced playing here as a player for many years with Liverpool. I think the compliment should go to the club. First and foremost the ambition from above to make it happen to get a player like Phil in.
“My part was the easy part , he was someone I had a fantastic relationship with as a player. Albeit when he goes to Barcelona and I go and do my stuff, of course it is different. But the easy thing for me was to get Phil Coutinho in an Aston Villa kit and get him to play well because he has huge talent.
“There are many things around talent but when you put those pieces back in place, it is only a matter time before you play well. The bigger compliment needs to be aimed at the club and the people above me who helped me to make it happen.”
Ninth-placed Villa visit Wolves, who are eighth, on Saturday with Gerrard still aiming to overhaul their West Midlands neighbours. Former Liverpool skipper and Rangers boss Gerrard is in unfamiliar mid-table territory as the end of the season approaches but he explained why Villa’s final eight games of the campaign are still vital to him.
Gerrard, in charge since November added: “First and foremost our priority was to move away from the bottom positions in the league as we were 16th when we arrived. We got that initial bounce as we started really well.
“The pattern has seen us have good patches followed by periods where we have suffered some bad results. It is clear to me what we need to do in the short-term and that is to finish the season in the best possible way and be as consistent as we can to set up that top half finish.
“I believe that will be a positive finish if you look where the club has finished over the last decade. The plan for us is can we go away from that final game in a place where we are not happy but we are in a position to build from with a positive pre-season and the ability to add some quality as well.”
