---
title: "Journalist says Coutinho ‘struggled’ in West Ham defeat"
canonical: "https://readastonvilla.com/2022/08/29/journalist-says-philippe-coutinho-struggled-in-west-ham-defeat/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Crippy Cooke"
section: "Aston Villa News"
published: "2022-08-29T10:59:26Z"
modified: "2022-08-29T10:59:27Z"
---

# Journalist says Coutinho ‘struggled’ in West Ham defeat

Philippe Coutinho underperformed as [Aston Villa lost 1-0 to West Ham United](https://www.avfc.co.uk/news/2022/august/28/aston-villa-v-west-ham-united/) on Saturday afternoon, resulting in him being hooked midway through the second half.

> Steven Gerrard makes his first two changes of the afternoon…\
> \
> 🟣 0-0 ⚫ \[66'\] [#AVLWHU](https://twitter.com/hashtag/AVLWHU?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [pic.twitter.com/AJ1o1ITGaL](https://t.co/AJ1o1ITGaL)
>
> — Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) [August 28, 2022](https://twitter.com/AVFCOfficial/status/1563895031106342914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

His only shot came from distance and he created two chances which weren’t clear-cut opportunities, so Steven Gerrard might be considering a change ahead of Wednesday’s trip to face Arsenal.

Coutinho was fortunate to start after being dropped in the 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace while underwhelming in the EFL Cup win over Bolton Wanderers, so he hasn’t done himself any favours with another mixed showing against West Ham.

*John Townley* of [Birmingham Live](https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/aston-villa-west-ham-ratings-24869248) gave the 30-year-old a player rating of 6/10 and said he ‘drifted in and out’ of the game. *Townley* added that Coutinho ‘struggled’ to make a real impact and believes Villa may need a tweak in formation for Coutinho to turn things around.

[Against West Ham](https://www.whoscored.com/Matches/1640705/LiveStatistics/England-Premier-League-2022-2023-Aston-Villa-West-Ham), the Brazilian international played for 65 minutes, had 52 touches, completed 80.6% of his 36 passes, created two chances, had one shot, whipped in two crosses, had one successful dribble and won two freekicks.

Coutinho has made [five appearances](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/philippe-coutinho/leistungsdaten/spieler/80444) in all competitions this season, failing to score or make an assist, so he might not start against Arsenal in midweek.

***[In other news, Lucas Digne was better offensively against West Ham](https://readastonvilla.com/2022/08/29/lucas-digne-was-better-offensively-against-west-ham/)***