---
title: "Mills says ‘bonus payment’ could see Villa land Coutinho"
canonical: "https://readastonvilla.com/2022/03/15/danny-mills-says-bonus-payment-could-see-aston-villa-land-philippe-coutinho/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Crippy Cooke"
section: "Aston Villa News"
published: "2022-03-15T20:40:40Z"
modified: "2022-03-15T20:40:41Z"
---

# Mills says ‘bonus payment’ could see Villa land Coutinho

Aston Villa would like to sign Philippe Coutinho on a permanent deal as he’s impressed since joining on loan from Barcelona, but the financial package may prove a stumbling block. Villa have no problem triggering the 29-year-old’s [€40m (£33.6m) buying option](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/jan/07/aston-villa-agree-deal-to-sign-philippe-coutinho-on-loan-from-barcelona), but they may struggle to match his [£480k-per-week wages](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2022/03/09/philippe-coutinho-must-cut-480000-a-week-wages-join-aston-villa/).

Coutinho has been a revelation at Villa Park, scoring four goals and making three assists in [nine Premier League appearances](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/philippe-coutinho/leistungsdaten/spieler/80444). He’s returned to Brazil’s national team and could find himself linked with a host of clubs in the coming months, but Danny Mills believes Villa stand a chance of landing his signature by offering a ‘bonus payment’ from the proposed transfer fee.

He told [Football Insider](https://www.footballinsider247.com/aston-villa-may-pay-philippe-coutinho-20m-directly-to-seal-incredible-transfer-mills/): “Can Villa do a deal on the transfer fee and get him on an incredible cut-price deal? Barcelona gets him off their wage bill which we know is a problem for them. Instead of paying £30million for him, they might pay £10million and use the other £20million to give to him as a bonus or a loyalty payment. It can be done, it can be worked out.”

Mills has a point. Barcelona [paid](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/42580173) £142m to sign Coutinho from Liverpool in 2018 and are already willing to take a £108m price cut, so they clearly want him off the wage bill more than getting cash up front. Coutinho earns £25m a year at the Camp Nou and has 15 months left on his deal, so his sale would save the Catalans £32.2m.

Barcelona are still [recovering from the debt incurred](https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/barcelona-joao-laporta-financial-debt-25087553) from years of poor spending, so Villa might be able to lower the transfer fee if they can get Coutinho off the wage bill.

***[In other news, Kevin Phillips says Aston Villa could sign ‘superb’ Kalvin Phillips](https://readastonvilla.com/2022/03/15/kein-phillips-says-aston-villa-could-sign-superb-kalvin-phillips/)***