MANCHESTER, England: After spells with some of European soccer’s biggest clubs, Philippe Coutinho joined Qatari team Al-Duhail on a season-long loan from Aston Villa on Friday.
The former Liverpool, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan playmaker’s move comes after a slew of the sport’s biggest stars have been lured to Saudi Arabia’s lucrative league.
Al-Duhail described the Brazil international as a “great asset” after confirming his arrival.
The 31-year-old Coutinho was a record signing for Barcelona when joining the Catalan club in a deal worth up to 160 million euros (then $192 million) in 2018.
But his time at the Nou Camp did not go to plan as injury problems saw him fail to live up to expectations and led to loans at Bayern and Villa. He joined Villa in a permanent deal last year, but did not appear to be part of manager Unai Emery’s plans this season after making just two substitute appearances.
He made 43 appearances for Villa and scored six goals.
Coutinho joined Liverpool from Inter in 2013 and the money earned from his move to Barcelona played a big part in Jurgen Klopp’s rebuild that saw the Merseyside club win the Champions League and the Premier League in the following years.
Al-Duhail won the Qatar league last season and hope Coutinho’s arrival will boost their chances of triumphing in the Asian Champions League.
Qatar hosted the men’s World Cup last year, but since then it has been Saudi Arabia that has established itself as a powerhouse of world soccer.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane have been among the marquee names to head to the Saudi league, which spent over $1 billion dollars on signings during the last transfer window.
Former Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho joins Qatari team Al Duhail on loan from Villa
https://arab.news/cqu8v
Former Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho joins Qatari team Al Duhail on loan from Villa
- Al-Duhail described the Brazil international as a “great asset” after confirming his arrival
- The 31-year-old Coutinho was a record signing for Barcelona when joining the Catalan club in a deal worth up to 160 million euros
Napoli beat Bologna to lift Italian Super Cup
- Brazilian winger Neres curled in a brilliant shot from distance to give Napoli the lead before half-time against last season’s Italian Cup winners
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia: Napoli won the Italian Super Cup on Monday as David Neres scored twice to secure the reigning Serie A champions a 2-0 win over Bologna in the final in Jeddah.
Brazilian winger Neres curled in a brilliant shot from distance to give Napoli the lead before half-time against last season’s Italian Cup winners.
He struck again in the second half after intercepting a weak pass from Bologna goalkeeper Federico Ravaglia as he tried to play out from the back.
Neres finished with three goals in the Super Cup after also scoring in the 2-0 semifinal win over AC Milan last week.
It is the third time Napoli have won the competition, after 1990 and 2014.
“The lads deserve congratulations,” Napoli coach Antonio Conte told Sport Mediaset.
“They showed how much they wanted this trophy for the fans, and we’ll also have a great Christmas celebration now with a new trophy in the cabinet.”
Traditionally featuring the Serie A and Italian Cup champions, since 2023 the Italian Super Cup has also included the runners-up from league and cup.
The four-team tournament is contracted to be held in Saudi Arabia until 2029.
Napoli, who trail Serie A leaders Inter Milan by two points, return to league action on Sunday away to Cremonese. Bologna are at home to Sassuolo.
