Despite securing Champions League football last season, Aston Villa are still looking to let go of key players this summer in order to prevent any potential financial sanctions.
Villans need to balance the books this summer
With the prospect of financial fair play sanctions hanging over the transfer business of almost every club in the Premier League, Villa appear to be one of the sides most desperate to shift some dead weight this summer.
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The recent transfer of Tim Iroegbunam has gone some way to ease these pressures with the young midfielder joining Everton in a £10million deal. Iroegbunam joins Morgan Sanson out the exit door, who departed Villa Park for Nice in a permanent move back in May.
Also looking more and more likely to leave is key player Douglas Luiz. The Brazilian midfielder has long been touted with a move away from the Midlands with a £43million transfer to Italian giants Juventus now all but confirmed.
Whilst these moves will go some way to reduce the strain on Villa's finances, it appears that the Villans are now looking to cut ties with a high earner that has been out of favour at Villa Park for some time.
Villa set to cut ties with Coutinho
As first reported by Football Insider's Pete O'Rourke, the Villans are working with Philippe Coutinho to cancel his contract at Villa Park. The outlet states that the Brazilian will be allowed to leave Villa Park on a free this summer despite still having two years remaining on his current deal.
Whilst his contract runs until the summer of 2026, Unai Emery reportedly has no interest in keeping Coutinho at the club with sources telling Football Insider back in May that there is “no way back” for the midfielder at Villa Park.
Despite things ending on a sour note, Coutinho was once considered one of the Villans' star players, particularly under the management of Steven Gerrard. The former Villa manager had been the Brazilian's teammate at Liverpool and appeared to get the best out of the 32-year-old during his early passages with the club.
Coutinho first came to Villa Park on loan from Barcelona during the latter half of the 2021/22, contributing five goals and three assists in just 19 games for the club. Following his successful audition, the midfielder joined permanently in the summer of 2022 for a fee in the region of £17million.
Following the permanent deal things went downhill fast for Coutinho with the Brazilian scoring just once the following season. The 32-year-old then went on to spend last season on loan with Qatari outfit Al-Duhail, all but signaling an end to his time at Villa Park.
With Coutinho commanding a weekly wage of £125,000 per week as per Capology, it is logical for the Villans to cut their losses with the midfielder and terminate his contract early.
As financial fair play sanctions loom large over Villa's transfer activities this summer, getting Coutinho's massive wage off the books should free up room to bring in players that Emery actually wants in his squad.