Philippe Coutinho has joined Aston Villa on loan from Barcelona until the end of the Premier League season.
The Brazilian is reunited with his former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard at Villa Park, and returns to England four years after leaving Anfield for the Nou Camp in a £142m deal.
Coutinho played with Gerrard in the latter's final two-and-a-half seasons as a player at Liverpool, and all-in-all featured 201 times for the Reds across five years, scoring 54 goals.
The 29-year-old has found life tougher since leaving Merseyside in January 2018 for what is still a record sale for Liverpool, and struggled to adjust to life at Barcelona despite a strong start.
He was loaned to Bayern Munich for the 2019-20 season, and was part of the squad that lifted the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League trophies in 2020, playing 38 times in all competitions.
The 63-times capped Brazil international joins a Villa side currently sitting 13th in the Premier League, but one that has had a notable upturn in form since the appointment of Gerrard as manager in November.
The former Rangers boss was coy when he was asked about his ex-teammate at a press conference on Thursday, with the deal having sped up since then.
"Sixty-three caps for Brazil, a serial winner, was incredible at Liverpool, so I can understand why he's linked to a lot of football clubs," said Gerrard.
"I can understand why a lot of supporters up and down the country are speaking about him. I don't think you get a nickname as a magician if you're not a special footballer, so he's someone I have an incredible amount of respect for.
"But I don't want to add to any speculation, because he belongs to Barcelona."
Elaborating on their time together as players, he added: "To share a dressing room and a pitch with Coutinho was an absolute pleasure.
“He was on a level that very few footballers are on with his imagination and creativity. His highlights reels are there for all to see. The name speaks for itself.
"He is also linked to five-six other clubs in this league and I am sure there would be a long list of foreign clubs that are linked with Philippe’s services as well.
“You are talking about a world-class individual and player."
Coutinho had also been linked with the likes of Arsenal, Everton and Newcastle as he targeted a return to the Premier League, with a move back to Liverpool also never quite ruled out.
He'll join Villa hoping to discover some of the form he showed in England, with a permanent switch back to the Premier League perhaps possible in the summer.
