Philippe Coutinho
Along with signing Perisic, Die Roten also decided to sign Philippe Coutinho on a one-year loan from Barcelona. The Brazilian forward had a tough 18 months in Spain, so he decided to kickstart his career in Bavaria.
Coutinho arrived with a lot of expectations, but he has struggled to make a big impact on the pitch. He has shown glimpses of his playmaking ability, failing to maintain consistency in his performances. His best performances came under Kovac when he was given an extended run in his favoured number ten role.
Thomas Muller’s resurgence under Flick has limited Coutinho’s opportunities. In 32 games across all competitions, Coutinho has scored nine goals and created five goals. These stats may look decent, but for a player that may command a €100 million fee, those are disappointing numbers. Moreover, the former Liverpool forward has also struggled to influence big games.
Coutinho is unlikely to get a permanent move to Bayern in summer. The German club will look at other young attacking players in summer rather than paying big money for Coutinho. In his only season at the club, Coutinho has struggled to show his outstanding qualities despite delivering some memorable moments. (Stats courtesy: Whoscored)