Aston Villa could sign Philippe Coutinho on a permanent basis from Barcelona for less than the £33m agreed buy option, according to a report.
The ex-Liverpool man reunited with Steven Gerrard at Villa Park last month and has immediately hit the ground running with two goals and two assists in three Premier League matches.
The Lions possess the option to sign Coutinho permanently at the end of the season for a reported £33m, four years after Barcelona forked out £121.5m to prise him away from Liverpool.
Amid the Catalans' long-standing financial problems, Birmingham Live claims that Villa could try to drive the price down, with Xavi's side still desperate to offload the Brazilian this summer.
The report adds that Barca may be prepared to accept a fee of £25m to let Coutinho leave for good, with the buy option not fixed at £33m, allowing Gerrard's side room to negotiate.
Coutinho's Barcelona deal now has less than 18 months left to run, and the 29-year-old has banked 25 goals and 14 assists in 106 appearances for La Blaugrana during his injury-hit four-year spell.
Ben Knapton
