Steven Gerrard has described Philippe Coutinho as “world-class” amid Aston Villa’s attempts to bring the Brazilian back to the Premier League.
Villa are one of up to five top-flight suitors for Coutinho who is ready to leave Barcelona on loan this month.
Coutinho, 29, joined the Spanish giants from Liverpool for £142million in January 2018 but has struggled in La Liga despite winning silverware.
He spent the 2019-20 season on loan at Bayern Munich and has started only five games this season, the most recent of which was a month ago.
But Gerrard admires his pals’ capabilities after Coutinho’s five-and-a-half seasons with Liverpool, two-and-a-half of which were alongside the now Villa boss.
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Gerrard assessed: “He is a wonderful footballer.
“To share a dressing room and a pitch with Coutinho was an absolute pleasure.
"He's a friend of mine.
“He was on a level that very few footballers are on with his imagination and creativity.
“His highlight reels are there for all to see.
"He's won two league titles at Barcelona, two Copa del Reys.
"If you go and have a look at his Wiki page you'll see a serial winner wherever he goes.
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"He's won 63 caps for Brazil, played for Barcelona and was incredible at Liverpool.
"I don't think you get a nickname of 'The Magician' if you're not a special footballer.
"I can understand why a lot of supporters up and down the country are speaking about him.
“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.
"He is someone I've got an incredible amount of respect for, but I don't want to add to any speculation because he belongs to Barcelona.
“I do appreciate his name is out there and he is linked to Aston Villa.
“I appreciate and respect the speculation but I can’t give anything further than that.
“That is not fair or respectful and I wouldn’t like that disrespect coming this way in terms of Aston Villa.”
Villa, who are 13th in the top-flight, are ready to back new boss Gerrard this month with cash from billionaire owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens.
Gerrard, whose side have lost successive games, is also after a defensive midfielder after Marvelous Nakamba’s knee injury.
Jack Grealish was previously the club’s highest paid player on £130,000-a-week but they are likely to have smash that to meet Coutinho’s £150,000-a-week contract at Barca until June 2023.
Coutinho, who has scored 28 goals in 105 games for Barca, has struggled to make an impact for the La Liga side but has won four major trophies.
In his season on loan at Bayern he won the Champions League, the Bundesliga, and the German Cup under Hansi Flick.
